Strings of Red
by LiYaNa1995
Summary: A red string is said to connect two people together, but Yata and Fushimi doesn't believe such words until a pair of Strains decided to jump them. Their bond that was once broken are now put to the test as they struggle to find a way to break the spell while living under the same roof. Can they settle their differences and work together even in the brink of death? Time will tell..
1. Knave

I see I managed to capture your attention to this fiction. Welcome. This is my very first K story, not my first story, so you needn't need to worry about silly mistakes here. I have watched K from beginning to end and I have to say..I love every second of it! Fushimi and Misaki's friendship caught my eyes and after knowing these two will be on friendlier terms in the second season, I just have to write something about it.

Though I'm pretty sure the reason they got friendlier is because of Mikoto's death and lots of comforting instead of this.. *smiles* But I have to work on my imagination somehow, right?

So instead of rambling about here and now, I shall leave you people with the story. Ayame and Yua are my creations along with their abilities and the plot of the story. The rest belongs to GoRa and GoHands.

So..please enjoy the story

* * *

The late night breeze wisps past Yata as he idly made his way back to Bar HOMRA using his skateboard. Izumo had asked him to run some errands, Yata wanted to refuse at first but knowing that it's _Izumo_ –that alone speaks for itself- he thought better and went off without any complaints.

But now he regrets not saying anything. His eyes are killing him and his body screams at him to get some sleep, and the breeze isn't helping his tired condition.

_Kusanagi-san...I wonder why he didn't send someone else?_ The boy thought grumpily as he rubs an eye to clear his vision. Turning around a corner, he continues to silently skate back to HOMRA when he notices a silhouette up front.

_Probably a drunk_, he thought ruefully. He ignores the figure completely when he passes it, going quite fast he couldn't see the face until he's jerked backwards by his right arm. "Bastard! What do you want?" he growls out.

The vanguard then notices the figure as his former friend and Scepter 4's Third-in-Command; Fushimi Saruhiko. The younger of them grins manically when he sees Yata staring up at him in surprise, the grip on his arm tightens until the vanguard winces.

"Misaki..." he drawls out playfully as Yata gets to his feet and tugging his arm away. "What're you doing out here so late at night?" Fushimi asks as he grips on Yata's arm tighter. The vanguard wrenches his arm away with hate flaring behind his eyes.

"None of your business, stupid monkey! I should be asking you that question! Walking around looking like a drunk. I thought you Blues are more sophisticated, heh, guess I was wrong," Yata sneers at the other boy.

Fushimi merely clicks his tongue in annoyance, his eyes wandering from the boy to the surrounding scenery. The street is completely silent, save for the cries of cicadas and occasional owl hoots. He's currently on duty, searching for a pair of Strain miscreants that's been around and messing with people until he bumped into Yata.

Truth be told, he doesn't even want to be outside this late at night, preferably to stay in his apartment and going over the mountains of paperwork the lieutenant had given him. But now, all things come to an interest to him.

"Strains, the captain asked me to search for them; apparently they've been messing with people by sticking them together, literally," Fushimi drawls out in a monotonous voice. "All I want to do is sleep actually, that is, until I see you here..."

The skateboarder twitches slightly when he sees the sadistic grin on his former friend's face. Despite the fact that the Red King died a few weeks ago, doesn't change Fushimi's attitude at all. It seems to Yata that Fushimi's gotten more adamant at harassing him whenever they meet, and it looks like that won't change anytime soon.

"You creep; shouldn't you be doing your work instead?" Yata spats venomously. He's far too tired to even have verbal fight with his rival, let alone a physical one. Instead of riling them both, Yata tries his best to both stay awake and send Fushimi off without so much as a scratch.

The blue clansman clicks his tongue and looks down at his friend. Yata looks a bit off, there are bags under his eyes, his skin's paler, he looks skinnier and his eyes seem to have lost its usual shine. Though he doesn't show it, Fushimi cares a lot about his friend, more than Yata could ever comprehend.

"What do you think this is? Playtime?" Fushimi asks sarcastically as he looks around to make sure the Strains don't try to sneak past them. "In case you haven't noticed, this is work for me. But like you, I'd rather be at home and do paperwork or sleep. I don't get why I have to patrol around in the middle of the night..." he grumbles hotly.

Yata also clicks his tongue in annoyance. His body now sagging and he's trying his very best to stay awake instead of falling asleep on the asphalt. The redhead is about to shout something at his former friend when a movement on his right caught his attention. Fushimi also notices this and turns around behind him.

There by a tree, they could easily see a girl who looks about their age with shoulder-length black curls tied in a high ponytail and attire consisting of a white sleeveless shirt with an upturned collar and only reaching under her breasts, leaving her stomach bare. She also wears a denim shorts that reaches until only under her buttocks and knee high black boots. Her eyes are a mesmerizing green that turns yellow as they reach her pupils.

"Oh my..." she smirks out as she languidly walks towards the boys. Fushimi already has his hand on his saber in case she lashes out, knowing full well that she's the Strain he's after. Unfortunately Yata doesn't know that and starts to blush furiously. "A lover's quarrel perhaps?"

The redhead sputters and blushes an even darker red, prompting Fushimi to roll his eyes at him. "What? What gave you that crazy idea?" Yata said hotly as he stutters a little. The girl merely chuckles lightly and fixes her gaze on the boys; her sharp cat-like eyes seem to glow as if she had found something.

"My, my, my. You two have quite a unique bond. Allow me to introduce myself," she said politely causing the boys to look at her in wonder. The girl bows slightly like how a butler would, even putting a hand behind her back. The other, her right hand, extends forward as if wanting to go for a shake.

"My name is Ayame," she smiles coldly at Fushimi who stands rigidly. "The 'seer of bonds'. I overheard your conversation earlier, and yes I admit, I'm the Strain miscreant,"

"I'm well aware of that. Scepter 4 got most of both your details down and I have them right here in my PDA," Fushimi cuts in quickly and pulls out said PDA, revealing Ayame's profile along with her female acquaintance. Ayame's eyes literally glow brightly when he said that and Yata backs away slightly as her expression turns murderous.

But then, she smiles again, albeit more deadly and hiding ill intention. "I praise, Scepter 4 is as skillful as they come. And quite a mastermind too. Makes me wonder what you do in your spare time, along with your newborn King," she says out in a voice filled with a mocking tone. "He's beautiful, I give you that. But to think, he killed the Red King, how malicious,"

"That is to prevent the fall of his Sword of Damocles and the repeat of the Kagutsu incident. What our King does is none of your concern, you and your acquaintance are to come with me into custody so that you'd be taken to the Gold King's institute," Fushimi snaps back harshly knowing that they're going into sensitive topic. He could see Yata visibly shaking at the mention of Suoh Mikoto's death.

The girl however, isn't deterred by his commanding voice. She seems to be enjoying mocking them both knowing she had hit a nerve. "I see... You're a HOMRA member, aren't you?" she said whilst pointing to an enraged Yata. "Must be horrible to see your King gone and died. But your bond isn't with your former King, oh no. It is with him,"

When she points at Fushimi, Yata can only gape like a fish. Even Fushimi seems quite shocked with this. He had known the fact that this Strain is able to 'see' the red strings that binds people together; a bond. Hence why her name is Ayame, which means 'Iris'. But to think that Yata's bond is intertwined with his, that just makes him giddy.

"And we just hate seeing broken bonds, don't we Ayame?" says a new voice behind them. Turning around, they could see another girl looking almost identical as Ayame, only that her hair is straight and reaches down until her waist.

Unlike Ayame who reveals so much skin, this girl is more modest and wears a white baby doll dress with short puffy sleeves and ankle high strap black heels. On the hem of her dress seems to have vine-like decorations in peach colour that makes her look somewhat sweet and gentle. Her eyes are similar to Ayame's, only it's yellow and goes green as they near her pupils.

"My name is Yua. I am the 'manipulator of bonds'. If you're wondering who's been sticking people together, that'd be me," she said rather sweetly, but her smile is nothing of sorts. It held power, secrecy and something neither boys could fathom. She went over beside Ayame who is surprisingly a bit shorter than her even on heeled boots.

"You see, we hate to see bonds crumbling and destroyed in front of our eyes. It hurts just so bad. And from my eyes, the both of you have deep red string connecting to the both of you. But that string is slowly dissipating and breaking, and we wouldn't want that," Ayame says coldly. Her eyes showing that of a predator on the hunt.

"Thanks to Ayame's eyes," Yua continues, her hand extended forward and bathing in a gentle white light that slowly turns red. "I, who manipulate bonds, can mend that red string of yours,"

Before either boy could comprehend, the red glow on her hand flashes so brightly to the point where they have to cover their eyes. They could hear the girls laughing and when they sense that the flash is gone, they could see both Strains looking down at them from atop their perch on a tree.

"You take care of that boy nicely, Yatagarasu-kun," Ayame taunts with a laugh. "That goes the same to you, Scepter 4 agent!" she spits out venomously before disappearing along with her friend by jumping from one tree's branch to another tree with the flexibility of a cat.

Fushimi clicks his tongue annoyingly before rubbing his eyes when he notices something strange on his left wrist. It looks like a handcuff, but it feels somewhat more rough and jagged, and it's glowing red too. There looks as if a string connecting it to...

Upon closer inspection, Fushimi notices that it's connected to Yata's right wrist. The smaller boy is rubbing his eyes in an attempt to reduce the flashes behind his eyes, clearly oblivious to what's on his wrist or what just happened. The younger of them clicks his tongue to hide his giddiness as he watches where the girls had disappeared.

"They disappeared. I'll have to contact headquarters about this as it seems they've caught us in their game," Fushimi said while tugging on his left wrist purposely, causing Yata to yelp and look down in surprise. At first the vanguard couldn't tell what it was, and when he realizes, he thrashes around causing Fushimi's glasses to be knocked askew.

"Stupid monkey! What did you do?" In his half-asleep, half-awake state, Yata couldn't fathom what Fushimi had just said and only registered his annoyed expression. The younger of the two stays quiet as his ex-friend rambles about incoherently and fixes his glasses.

Fushimi checks over the red cuffs and string. He tries to break the cuffs with his knives powered with his red aura, and even used his saber shrouded in blue aura but neither works. And to add fat to the fire, the string connected them both seems to have shrunken. What was once almost 10 centimeters long is now only two.

"I told you," the blue clansman sighs tiredly. "I didn't do anything, it's those Strains. They both can play with people's bonds and make them stick together or even make them fight until a relationship is broken," Fushimi explains in a bored tone. Deep inside, he felt a small pang when hearing his own words, but looking at the red cuffs again made him feel elevated once more.

Yata slowly starts to comprehend what was being told. "So, those girls did this to us? And how exactly are we going to break this, huh? I'm not going to get stuck to you for the rest of my life, stupid monkey!"

Those words, those hurtful words. The younger of the two could feel the sword in his heart going deeper causing such painful feelings.

"Ayame, the 'seer of bonds' can see a bond tying people together, that's why her name is Ayame which means 'Iris'. Yua, the 'manipulator of bonds' can play with those red strings according to her will. Her name meaning 'Binding affection'. Once those two caught sight of people they thought needed some push in their relationship, they can either stick those people together, like us," he points to the red cuffs. "Or break them apart by dissipating their red string,"

Yata took a few moments to understand this. He knows about the red string of bonds, but never in his life would he believe it to be real, until now!

"So...those two got us and we're stuck?" he asks slowly, sweat already forming on his face due to nervousness. At first Fushimi seems to enjoy seeing his once friend looking so nervous knowing that two girls are playing with him, but then he thought of his own condition.

With a nod, he stares back at the shorter male. "In short, yeah, they got us and we're stuck,"

Fushimi had never heard Yata let loose a string of curses like that before.

* * *

*sighs* I really want to do an m-preg story with these two but unfortunately someone had the same idea as me..so I couldn't go forth with it. I was already halfway at typing the story when I saw it up in someone else's account..I was saddened. But I was also happy that it was the person who wrote it, I could never make it that angsty. *laughs* And it's highly entertaining too! It's called _Until We Bleed_ by PointsofAuthority34.

Oh yes, regarding the Gold King's institute, that one is official. I saw it in the _K Side: Red _a kind soul helped translated. The SaruMi in there just makes me feel so..fluffy..

I'm sorry if the story isn't up to your expectation or if I repeat myself way too much, but I've poured almost all my soul in a previous Ouran High story that I'm still gathering the pieces. I've write plenty of stories over the course of four years and I poured everything I have into them. Either in essays, exams, on paper or even in fanfiction, I always gave my all, that's why now I feel my life has been sucked out.

I just regained back my spirit somewhat, so it'll be nice if I can hear your opinion on this story. Please? *smiles*


	2. Know

..I just finished five pages of this in one day, I'm on a roll! But then again my Internet connection is crap so I have to distract myself and I can't even check my mail so..THANK YOU FOR THE FAVES, ALERTS AND REVIEWS. Or 'review' in this case. Thank you sir guest, I shall keep up the good work.

Hmm..normally it'll take me at least a week to actually finish five pages, but this only took me a day, you people are lucky. *laughs* So here's the installment for chapter 2, I hope you enjoy..

* * *

"Will you cut that out? You're annoying!" Fushimi snaps after a while. Yata breathes out heavily and tugs on his wrist causing Fushimi to stumble over. He wanted to taunt the shorter boy and mocking him but found out that he was only trying to bit his way out of the red cuffs. "What are you doing?"

Glaring up at Fushimi, Yata spat at him venomously. "What does it look like, stupid monkey? I'm trying to break whatever this thing is! Everything has a weakness right? I'm pretty sure this thing does too!" he shouts before starting to gnaw on the cuffs again causing Fushimi to sigh exasperatedly. Really, this boy can be so stupid sometimes.

"Don't do that, you look like a rat trying to sharpen its fangs. Whatever this thing is, it's unbreakable and only those two Strains can undo this," Fushimi explains with a tug of the cuffs. He realizes that the strings have gotten shorter and clicks his tongue in annoyance. He couldn't believe he was jumped by those two.

Pulling out his PDA, he decides to call the Vice-Captain regarding his find, and his current situation while Yata watches with curiosity. The elder male watches and listens with mild curiosity, never before had he ever heard such formal tone coming out of his once friend's mouth, normally Fushimi would just be quiet and click his tongue.

"We have to get back to Scepter 4," the taller of the two says, startling Yata a bit. Go back? To Scepter 4? With Fushimi Saruhiko? No chance!

Seething silently, Yata tries to pry his hand away from his former friend. "As if I'd go back to the Blues' place with you! I'm not going anywhere near that place or the very same person who killed Mikoto-san!"

Annoyance crosses over Fushimi's face and with his free hand, he grasps Yata's right wrist tightly causing the shorter male to wince in pain. That's when he notices the anger and the pain behind those blue eyes. "Listen here, Misaki. It's night time; we got jumped by a pair of Strains and who else deals with Strains if not Scepter 4? If you go back to Homra, what can they do? I'm pretty sure even they'd agree that you should follow me back to the Captain so he knows how to get rid of this,"

Yata tries to interrupt but was quickly cut off by Fushimi who leans his face closer to the other boy, causing Yata to blush slightly. "We can argue about this the whole night, but you're as tired as I am and the faster we can get this done, the faster we can go home, got that?"

The tone in his voice clearly shows that he actually is tired and Yata finally relents. With a groan and a nod, he silently follows his former friend quietly with his skateboard tucked under his free arm. The walk is silent and awkward; neither knows what to say or where to look except below or ahead.

"Hey Saru," Yata asks quietly, his eyes downcast and shaded from view. The aforementioned boy turns to look at his former friend and notices that he wants to ask something, yet he looks as if he couldn't find the right words for it. After a few short while, Yata looks up at him with a disgusted look.

"How the fucking hell are we going to change clothes and go to the toilet like this? I'm not going to see your junk and I sure as hell wouldn't want to wear the same shirt over and over again for fuck knows how long,"

Fushimi's eyes widen slightly and Yata could see a short disgusted look crosses his expression, but that disappeared as quickly as it came. Clicking his tongue, he checks his wrist and is somewhat startled to see the red string connecting them a little longer than before. This little information made him wonder in silence.

"Those Strains are smart, I'm pretty sure they limit this to certain things," Fushimi said in a rather bored tone before continuing as silently as he could. "I hope,"

But Yata still heard that and his face flushes red in both anger and embarrassment. "What do you mean 'you hope'? I thought you have all the information about that Strain and now you're saying that you're not even sure if this thing's got a limit to certain things? This is weird! This is seriously fucking weird! Oi Saru, say something!"

"Will you NOT scream and shout like that? You're annoying and you've probably woken the whole neighborhood!" Fushimi snaps back irritably. He's tired, he's sleepy and Yata's constant screaming and panicking isn't helping his irritation with the whole situation. Does he truly think he's the only one finding this whole ordeal unpleasant?

Yata seems to quiet down after those words and huffs, looking away from the taller boy. Truth be told, he knew he had pushed the line. Fushimi would never sound like that if he wasn't so tired. Even in their younger days, Fushimi always releases more emotions when he's irritated, tired or even angry.

"Scepter 4's just up ahead," Fushimi's voice suddenly cuts the air and breaking the tense silence. "We just have to report to the Captain and maybe he'll release us before daybreak. I really don't want to do paperwork now," he sighs while running his free hand down his face.

As they made their way across Scepter 4's courtyard, two pair of eyes is watching them from afar with gleeful smiles on their faces.

"You know, I've never seen such strange, weak yet at the same time, strong bond before," Ayame cackles mischievously while standing atop a tree branch. Yua next to her, sitting down and swinging her legs back and forth while watching the boys enter the building. "It's intriguing actually,"

Yua merely hums and smiles as Ayame sat down next to her. "Yes, highly intriguing. But if those two don't settle their differences then there's no way the spell can be broken. You know how my powers work, don't you Ayame?"

The aforementioned girl nods her head and grins slightly, her eyes fixated on Scepter 4's building ahead of them. "Of course. Once you bind someone, the only way to break that binding is by becoming friends and settle their differences. The friendlier they got, the longer the string until to one point it just disappears on its own, if it deems their bond is strong enough that is."

Yua nods her head and continues where she left out. "And likewise if they fight, the string will become shorter and the pull will get stronger, causing them to have no choice but to make up until the string is long again."

"Now I want to see how long those two idiots can kiss and make out," Ayame grins out cheekily as Yua stares at her with slight disgust on her face.

"Kiss and...ew,"

Ayame merely shrugs and after a while, the two disappears into the night streets. Meanwhile in the Blue King's office, things had gone from awkward to just plain embarrassing as Reisi merely chuckles at the two young boys standing in front of him.

Yata and Fushimi however, does not find their situation near funny at all. The former is silently gritting his teeth while the latter is trying his best not to glare at his superior, but given the fact the King likes his straightforwardness, he decides to just glare anyway and clicking his tongue to show his annoyance.

"Sir, please... This is no laughing matter and if you haven't noticed, we're both very tired at this point of time," Fushimi deadpans while Yata grumbles something incoherent under his breath. Reisi calms himself enough to assess the situation at hand without laughing again. As amusing as this is, Fushimi can be somewhat volatile when he's exhausted.

"Unfortunately from the sources we gathered and according to the victims, the only way for this to disappear is if you two make up. Most of the victims say that whenever they fight, the string shortens and it grows back longer when they're on friendlier terms. This will eventually strengthen their relationship and thus, breaks the spell," Reisi explains as simply as he could without removing any important points.

Two pair of eyes blink simultaneously after that short explanation. Reisi deduces that the two are letting the information sink in and leans back in his chair, waiting the moment where one or both of them explodes into a panic attack.

"You're saying..." Fushimi starts slowly as if grasping the whole situation slower than usual. "The only way for us to get rid of this, is by being friends again?"

Reisi stares at the two dumbfounded boys with interest. Oh how he loves teasing his subordinates like this. "In simpler terms, yes, precisely what you said. What made me curious is that most of the victims are couples; I've only heard a few cases where two girls or two boys are made stuck. But even so, the Strains lost interest in them and cancels the spell after a few hours,"

Yata snorts after hearing that and rolls his eyes. "I hope they grow bored of us soon, no way am I walking around tied to him like this. People might think weird stuff,"

"Misaki," Fushimi drawls his name playfully while leaning his face closer to the shorter boy and causing him to yelp and jump backwards slightly. "Are you thinking of some naughty things? How indecent, makes me wonder how you even know those stuff when you're still a virgin,"

_I wonder how Fushimi-kun even knows that_, Reisi thought curiously. As the two exchange insults with each other, Reisi decides to continue telling them what he knows before releasing them. Their verbal fight right now could probably awaken those in the dormitories.

Clearing his throat, the two finally stops squabbling and turn their attentions to Reisi who now leans forward and folds his hands on the table. "I'm also glad to inform you that the couples that the Strains helped to bind are mostly either married, engaged or even dating. Best of luck to the both of you until we can capture them, you may leave,"

Yata was about to say something to the Blue King when a persistent tug from Fushimi made him shut his mouth long enough for his friend to ask the question the both of them want answers to.

"Before we leave, will we be able to change clothes and go to the bathroom without having the other follow us? I don't think the Strains would be stupid enough to forget about such trivial things,"

Reisi merely smiles in that cocky way before nodding his head. "The victims said that you can change clothes no problem. The fabric will just past through the strings and cuff, but it depends on the length of your string. If it's long, then you can change on opposite sides of the room, but if like yours, you'll have to change next to each other,"

Yata opens his mouth to curse loudly when the King's raised hand stops him. "Fortunately that's not the case when you need to go to the bathroom. It seems the string knows when you need to wash and will disappear the moment you enter a bathroom. But once you're outside, it doesn't matter where one or both may be, the cuffs and string will reappear and drag you two back together,"

Fushimi groans and rubs his free hand over his face in a tired exasperated manner while Yata moans in despair. Apparently they thought they could escape just by going to the bathroom, but sadly even that option is out of the question.

"Take this as the opportunity to mend your friendship back together. To me, I think the Strains took a liking to the both of you, hence why they made you stick like this together," Reisi smiles out. Though the smile seems rather cold and arrogant to Yata, he didn't dare say anything.

The two boys bowed to the Blue King and made their leave. The moment the door closes; Reisi releases a long chuckle before calming down. The ache in his heart that was dulled now throbbing full force after seeing his former rival and former friend's vanguard in front of him. The Blue King could clearly see he still has his pride as a Homra member despite Homra being no more, and he respected that.

Reisi never denied that the bond between Mikoto and his men are thicker than blood, he just doesn't like to be reminded that the bond between him and his clansmen are near inexistent. Even at a year end party he was left alone with Fushimi, and even then he was abandoned by said boy after bumping into the vanguard and challenging him to a fight.

"Popularity comes with a price, Suoh," he mutters solemnly, the puzzles on his desk almost completed but he couldn't find the spirit to finish it. "When you die, you hurt everyone around you,"

After leaving the Blue King's office, Yata and Fushimi debate whether to return to the former house or the latter.

"My apartment is _nearer_; we don't have to walk so far! And I can't exactly bring a passenger in this kind of condition, you as well as I know that's impossible," Yata seethes as he shakes his cuffed hand around for emphasis. Fushimi clicks his tongue and gave the shorter boy a short but annoyed glance.

"It's not whether whose house is nearer but whose bed is _bigger_. Do you really want to squeeze in with a single bed? Or is that your objective all along? Huh Misaki..." Fushimi grins out in a somewhat perverted manner, causing Yata to blush and choke on his own breath. "How indecent,"

"Stop twisting facts! You're saying as if you own a bigger bed! What'd you do in your free time, bringing chicks into your place and bang them senseless?" the vanguard spat venomously. He was then quite surprised to see a look of loneliness and hurt marred on Fushimi's face. Yata couldn't understand why he even has that expression; it couldn't be far from the truth, could it?

Suppressing a sigh, Fushimi turns to look at the shorter boy. "You know I have no interest in girls, I find them annoying,"

"You find everything annoying, even me," Yata deadpans with a leer. Fushimi's eyes went wide before a small smile graces his lips and disappearing as quickly as it came. Yata never stops surprising him, that boy is truly a living flame. Uncontrollable, wild, bright in its own way.

"You're always annoying," Fushimi said with a sigh. "Whatever, let's just go back to my place. I'm pretty sure there's a couple of newbies around here who could give us a ride. With my hand like this, I don't think I'll be behind the wheels for a while,"

After scouting around the building for a short while, Fushimi manages to find Akiyama working overtime at the monitors. The other Blue was quite surprised to see the former vanguard of Homra in Scepter 4's premises but after some explanation, he agreed to escort the two back to Fushimi's apartment.

While in the van, Yata fishes out his PDA from his pocket before calling Kusanagi. He's worried the bartender might freak out if he doesn't call. All the while Fushimi watches from his left, an old memory resurfacing at the back of his mind, a memory he desperately wants to forget.

"Ah Kusanagi-san, no I'm fine. I just got in a bit of a pinch," as Yata explains about the whole Strain thing, Fushimi could hear the relieved sigh on the other side and even a chuckle or two from the bartender. Seriously, why is everyone finding their predicament funny? If they were the one in this situation, he's pretty sure none of them would be smiling.

After Yata's done with his conversation, the two boys stayed silent with Yata looking ahead and Fushimi looking out the front glass. This highly reminds them back during their school days where they would ride the bus together and listening to songs, one earphone piece each.

Not long after the ride, Fushimi felt something on his left shoulder. Turning around, he was highly surprised to see Yata sleeping there, that and the string have gotten almost as long as it was forged earlier. Fushimi couldn't help but smile at the nostalgic feeling, the feeling of having his friend to himself and only the two of them mattered.

Not wanting to waste his luck and time, Fushimi leans in slightly to the shorter boy and lays his head lightly on top of Yata's, dozing off slightly. Akiyama, who sees the little sweet moment through his rearview mirror, almost drove into a telephone pole. Never before had he seen his superior so gentle and so...caring. It's as if he's seeing a different version of Fushimi.

_I shouldn't mention this to him, it'll be my head!_ He thought with a nervous chuckle before continuing to drive off towards their destination. Once arrived, he informs his superior who then gently shakes the vanguard awake before walking out and disappearing into the elevator. Akiyama could see that the strings have gotten quite long, yet the two are still standing so close to each other.

_Oh yes..._ he thought ruefully. _Must NEVER mention this to Fushimi-san. Though I'm pretty sure the Vice Captain would love to hear about this_. And with that, Akiyama made his way back to the van merrily after having the knowledge that even Fushimi has a soft side in him.

* * *

Akiyama is such a cutie..but I don't know him that well so I just put him as the quirky, cute type. And can you feel the short fluff at the end? That came from Fushimi's song, I Beg Your Hate where they would lean in to each other while listening to the earphone..oh how touching.

My friend and I do that too, and we still do! *grins* Oh I have so much to say about this chapter, but unfortunately I'm pressed for time -got an interesting movie on tv and I don't want to miss it- so I shall lay off a few words. Reisi's just being Reisi but after Mikoto's death and from the tweets from GoRa a friend translated, apparently his condition's also becoming more unstable, and he won't be the same King like we know in the second season.

Aahh..sorry for the spoiler but I just want to give a heads up. No more spoilers! But I can't promise you that..sorry *smiles* So, leave me reviews, PLEASE! As much as I appreciate the faves and alert, I also want to know what you think. So please..?


	3. Kismet

Good heavens I'm writing like the wind right now! Well, my Internet connection is still crappy so I can't really say anything.. Anyways, I've named the chapters! And I shall gladly inform you the names of each chapter;

Knave - a term for someone who's a troublemaker, or liars or does pranks. This shos the prankster Strains.  
Know - because Yata and Fushimi finally knows what to do to make the cuffs and string disappear.

With that settled, I now want to thank ALL who faved, reviewed and alerted! You people are the best! I was surprised so many people followed the story, so now I'm going to work my best! *smiles*Enjoy the story..

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After successfully changing clothes –with Yata complaining that he had to wear Fushimi's clothes- and taking a short shower each, they both got ready for bed. The string that was once long, now shorten a bit after their banter but still long enough for them not to actually sleep so close together.

Donned in a shirt and pants clearly a little bigger than his size, Yata climbs into bed and scoots over to the right side. The double bed is big enough for the both of them, as with the whole house. Yata still couldn't believe the size of the place when he first stepped in; it made his own apartment area puny in comparison. And to think Fushimi lived on his own, why would he need such a big place?

"Misaki, stop thinking so hard, I can smell your brain from here," Fushimi mumbles out as he too got under the covers. Since the string isn't long enough, they have to face each other as the slept. Yata sleeping on his left side and Fushimi sleeping on his right so that their bounded wrists can be free and not get tangled.

"Shut up! I can still think logically without your help, not like you helped me anyways," Yata roars back vehemently while pushing Fushimi's face with his free hand.

Clicking his tongue, Fushimi grabs the other boy's wrist with his cuffed hand and holds it far from his face. The constant pushing had knocked his glasses askew so he had to sit up and folds it away with his free hand before putting it on the bedside table. Yata stares up at his friend's face intently, he hardly sees Fushimi without his glasses. And silently he thought, Fushimi looks rather good without it.

Yata continues to look up at Fushimi, not realizing that he's been staring. The taller of the two grins slightly before going back under the covers and gently releasing the other's wrist. "You were rather hard to teach, and close your mouth or you'll catch a fly,"

Yata quickly snaps out of his daze and thumps Fushimi on the shoulder. "My mouth wasn't even opened," he grumbles before covering his face with a pillow. Fushimi only snorts before closing his eyes for the night. Never in his dreams would he even imagined to have his old friend back by his side, he should thank those Strains, but then again they're Strains so he shouldn't hope for much.

Outside of the apartment complex, the two Strains are languidly lounging around at the parking area with Ayame using her ability to locate the boys' room. Her eyes flash a yellow-green light as she beams with excitement when she manages to locate them sleeping soundly.

"Found them!" she chirps happily before turning to her friend. "What do you think? I see their strings are somewhat long now, I'm impressed they managed to make it that long, but I still think it's rather short and pathetic,"

"Correct," Yua answers back coolly. "In comparison, the string may be long but their bond is still very fragile. You can't judge by the string alone, feelings may lie sometimes and those two need serious help. Until they can work together without spitting fire at each other, those cuffs aren't going anywhere,"

And with that, the two Strains went off. Though they look indifferent to the boys, they're actually quite interested in how they would mend their broken friendship. In truth, the Strains meant well, jokers perhaps, but their intention is nothing more than to make two people close together once more. They know the pain of a broken heart, which is why they only target couples instead of friends. But in Yata's and Fushimi's case, it involves both friendship and the heart.

_Those two are idiots_, they thought simultaneously before disappearing into one of the alleys.

After a few hours, dawn finally arrives and showering the city in an ethereal light, rousing Shizume City's inhabitants from their slumber to do their normal routine. In a certain apartment complex however, a pair of boys find the light to be somewhat annoying as they curl more into their covers to shield their eyes.

Yata is at bliss, the warmth of the cover seeps in to his cold skin as the air conditioning system continues to blast freezing air into the room. He unconsciously nestles closer to a source of heat and murmurs something intelligible before his sleep-muddled brain finally realizes something.

It's not his bed, his room has no air conditioning system, and the 'source of heat' is moving. At first he doesn't know where he is but after seeing the glaringly obvious red cuff on his wrist, only then he let loose an ear-piercing shriek which effectively woke Fushimi. The younger of the two then proceeds to drag Yata back down to the cover where he quickly shuts him up with a pillow.

"Wake up you lazy-ass monkey! Why the heck do you think you can cuddle me in the middle of the night? I said wake up!" Yata shrieks while hitting the other boy on the arm. Fushimi only groans and covers himself with the blanket, intending to get more sleep.

"Shut up Misaki, and let me sleep. It's too early for this crap," Fushimi grumbles as Yata continues to hit him. Much to his annoyance, Yata is using both his hands to smack him so in turn; his left hand is being shaken violently. "Stop that! Do you want my arm to fall off?" he snaps irritably and got up from under the covers.

"It'll be better if your arm falls off! That way I won't have to deal with this shit any longer!" Yata snaps back. Before they both know it, the string shortens drastically and pulls their wrists together causing them to stumble forward onto the bed. "I'll kill those Strains if I ever see them again," the shorter boy grumbles out.

Fushimi too groans a bit and snatches his glasses from the bedside table. "Save some for me while you're at it," he then shuffles over to the edge of the bed followed by a reluctant Yata. "Whatever it is, I clearly can't work like this so I'm going to give a call to the Lieutenant. You go get a shower, I'm pretty sure Kusanagi-san wants to see what's going on,"

"Uhh...right," Yata nods slowly. Because the string is now very short, Fushimi has no choice but to walk with Yata all the way to the bathroom. The moment the boy's foot touches the tiled floor, the cuffs emit a soft red glow before disappearing. Fushimi took this chance to massage his wrist and his arm which was shaken just now.

As Yata cleans himself, Fushimi picks up his PDA and calls the Vice-Captain. Apparently she was informed of his situation and had relieved him of monitor duty and paperwork, but he's still to patrol around the city to find the Strain girls or any Strain he could find. Clicking his tongue, he hung up and stares at the direction of the bathroom.

It's been a while since he could actually talk to Yata like this without having to fight him for attention. That man, Suoh Mikoto had gone and left the world, stabbed by the hand of his former rival and also former friend. Yata was left devastated after the whole incident at Ashinaka High, but by some turn of events and a pair of joker Strains did the both of them end up stuck together.

He snorts upon thinking of that. They had intended to fight but were too tired and sleepy, so a pair of Strains saw the chance and stuck them together so that they'd be friends again. What crazy ways the world worked. But then again, he's also quite pleased to have Yata back by his side. If only he wouldn't scream so much.

Just then, his left wrist starts to glow red and he could feel his body slowly being pulled towards the bathroom door. Yata opens the door and the cuffs appear within a split second but since the two are on opposite sides of the room, they were hurled towards each other with a hard thump. Yata curses up a storm while rubbing his sore head while Fushimi only sighs in exasperation.

"I'll seriously kill those Strains..." the vanguard mumbles out before pulling Fushimi to stand up. He then adjusts the towel wrapped around his waist so that it won't fall. The last time Fushimi saw him naked, the former had teased him mercilessly for days. At least if the towel did fall off, there won't be anyone else in the room.

Grabbing his clothes, Fushimi made his way to the bathroom to shower while Yata wears his clothes. It's been agreed that after one of them showers, the other will bring their clothes in the bathroom to be changed later so that they don't have to watch each other change clothes.

"Oi Saru, where are we going after this? You said since you can't work with those cuffs, what are we suppose to do once I meet up with Kusanagi-san?" Yata asks whilst leaning against the bathroom door. His hair still wet and messy and he hadn't bothered to dry it or brush it.

There was no answer from behind the door at first, and Yata thought he should ask louder when he heard a soft sigh on the other side. "The Vice-Captain had relieved me from paperwork and monitor duty, not patrol duty. So after you see Kusanagi-san, we're going around Shizume City,"

Yata hums slightly at the information. Seeing how he'd probably spend a few nights here, he might as well bring his clothes from his own apartment; no way is he wearing the same shirt over and over again, that's disgusting.

After a while, Fushimi steps out of the shower dressed and ready while Yata waits for him beside the door. The cuffs re-materialize and they both got their things. Yata puts on his beanie and grabs his skateboard while Fushimi made a move for his saber and jacket. They both walk out the door and heads off to the direction of bar Homra.

The walk is similar to when they went to Scepter 4, quiet and somewhat awkward. Neither looks like they wanted to strike conversation anytime soon so they simply made their way looking around. The people around them could clearly see their hands bounded together but after a glare from both boys, none of them commented anything.

"We're practically at the centre of attention right now," Yata seethes silently but is clearly heard by his companion. Fushimi cocks a brow but only shrugs as they continue their walk to bar Homra. It's a bit of a hike but Yata can't exactly bring a passenger with how they're stuck together, and taking a cab is out of the question since it's rush hour and traffic's everywhere.

A couple of high school girls then giggle slightly at their cuffed wrists and Yata quickly went tomato red, avoiding eye contact entirely causing the girls to giggle louder. As they past them, Fushimi snorts at the shorter boy.

"And you're mad when I call you a virgin. How can I not call you that when you can hardly look at a couple of school girls in the eyes?" Fushimi taunts. "Seriously, one might even ask if you're gay,"

Yata's eye twitches when he heard that and strikes Fushimi with his free fist, only for said fist to be caught in the other's free palm. Fushimi quirks a brow at the attack and his trademark sneer isn't even on his face, which made Yata wonder slightly. Normally Fushimi is always sneering when he manages to hit his nerve, but not this time.

"Lashing out like that, can't you think before you act for once? You hardly change at all," Fushimi sighs out before releasing Yata's fist and walking forward again, not even caring if he's dragging the shorter boy with him. All he wanted to do right now is just find those Strains so he can give them a piece of his mind.

"And you've changed a lot!" Yata shouts back vehemently. "By this point of time, I hardly even know you! Ever since you went to the Blues, you've changed, Saruhiko! And to think...we were once friends," Yata mumbles out the last part so quietly that one might think he's just mumbling to himself, but Fushimi knows better than that. He always does.

The taller of the two didn't say anything regarding to Yata's words, and Yata doesn't even comment on it. They simply walk towards bar Homra in utter silence and looking everywhere but each other. If one were to look closely, they could see utter pain and suffering behind both eyes.

Upon reaching bar Homra, Fushimi could see that some of the former red clansmen are all giving him weird looks. He merely ignores them and walks in with Yata by his side and Anna greeting them at the door. To see the girl without being beside Mikoto is weird, but he remembers the fact that the King is no more, as does his vassal.

"Izumo is at the back," she says emotionlessly before going back to the couch. Fushimi notices that most of the usual Homra members are no longer there, and he bit his tongue before asking any unnecessary questions. Homra is no longer his concern, this shouldn't even bother him.

"I'm back, Kusanagi-san!" Yata calls out before putting his skateboard in its usual place beside the couch. Fushimi silently made his way to the stools along with Yata and sat down, their bounded wrists on the counter so it won't look like they're holding hands from afar. The younger teen could see that the counter isn't as shiny and the place seems a little more run-down, but he's not saying anything.

There were some clanking from underneath and Kusanagi appears from behind the counter. Fushimi notes he still looks as good as before, as if the two deaths of his closest and eldest friends doesn't bother him the slightest. But he can also see the dimmed spark in the eyes behind those purple-tinted glasses.

"Ah, Yata-chan, I'm glad you're still in a piece," the bartender smiles out brightly. He then turns to a startled Fushimi who then clicks his tongue and looks away. "An' I'm glad you look fine too, Saru-kun," Kusanagi playfully rolls Fushimi's old calling over his tongue knowing that the teen hasn't changed by far.

"Don't call me by my name," Fushimi grumbles out causing Yata to look at him strangely.

Kusanagi merely chuckles knowing how ironic that is. He then notices their bounded wrists and leans in closer to have a better look. "Looks like you two are stuck real good," he murmurs. "Seri-chan told me what happened and how to make the string longer, you two have your work cut out for you,"

When he was met with silence, he looks up from the cuffs to the boys. Yata looks like his jaw is about to detach from his skull, Fushimi has an eyebrow so high up his forehead that Kusanagi's worried that his skin might stay stuck like that.

"Seri-chan?" they both ask. Yata with a shriek and Fushimi monotonously. Kusanagi realizes his little mistake and covers it by clearing his throat and glaring at the two boys.

"When you grow up a little more, you'll understand. My point is, I think the Strains meant well when they cuffed you two together like this. Maybe they want to see you be friends again," Kusanagi tries to appeal to them. Yata and Fushimi stares at each other for a short while before turning away with a huff.

"Those Strains are merely toying with us. From what we gathered in Scepter 4, they just like to prank people by jumping on them, tie them together and run off laughing. I find that as a public annoyance," Fushimi deadpans as he supports his chin with his free hand, his eyes never leaving the bartender.

Kusanagi sighs lightly and taps the cuffs twice. "They don't do this to everyone. Why didn't they do it to married couples, or engaged couples? Or even troubled couples? I have a feeling they're not just playing around, they want the right people to be together and separate those who might harm each other,"

The two boys didn't say anything to that, they slowly thought over his words and recalls their own predicament.

"Those Strains could see that you two are meant to be and stay as friends. In a sense, they're manipulating your luck with each other and with themselves. Perhaps they know you two won't work and dispels this thing," the bartender points to the cuffs before leaning down to look at the boys in the eyes. "Or perhaps they know you two WILL work and this thing will disappear on its own,"

Yata and Fushimi stares at each other again but this time, they look down at their bounded hands. Perhaps Kusanagi might be right, perhaps he might be wrong, after all that he said, this is just a game of luck. They might return as friends, or stay enemies. The two then turn to him and Yata opens his mouth to ask a question.

"You got this information somewhere, didn't you?"

Kusanagi merely laughs and winks at the boys before cleaning his wine glasses to perfection again. After getting that little boost, the two boys felt that perhaps they can at least try to mend their relationship and see where it goes.

"So, Yata-chan. Now that you're staying with Saru-kun for this time, you might want to get some extra clothes," Kusanagi says with that charming smile on his face.

"Yeah, I'm heading there after I'm meeting you anyway," Yata replies back. Kusanagi bid them farewell as they walk out of the door with Anna watching them without saying anything. He knows the girl's been watching them through her marbles the whole time, and she knows this is something she shouldn't interfere.

Looking at the door where the boys have long disappeared, Anna tucks her marble into her dress pocket and a small smile graces her lips.

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Oh wow..it's 1am here and I am at the verge of collapsing on my keyboard. Because I write one and a half page at this hour, so excuse the suddenly bad writing near the end..it wasn't in my mind to even finish this so soon! But since I did, I might as well put it up. *laughs*

I just can't leave the part where Fushimi and Yata sleeps together..it's a must! So allow me to go to bed now and..please leave some reviews and make my morning wonderous~ *laughs*

Kismet - destiny or luck. As Kusanagi says, this is all luck and the destiny of their friendship is on themselves.


	4. Kidnap

Wow, I'm blowned by the amount of reviewers, alerts and faves this story has. And some of the reviews actually helped me in making this better, so thank you! Now, I received a review saying that this story is according to a song..? Well, actually no. This story isn't based on any songs from K at all, in fact, I use drama cd's and songs as my guide to make this story to make it more realistic. I listened to the official character songs, check out their lyrics and put them in the story, like in chapter 2 where Fushimi and Yata reminisces the time back when they shared earphones. That was sung by Fushimi in I Beg Your Hate so I used that reference.

Enough of my rambling, I'm pretty sure you want to read this chapter now so I won't keep you waiting. To me, this is more like a 'filler' chapter just so the story can go on longer. But it still shows the boys' deepening bond, so it's not a total waste. *smiles*

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After visiting Kusanagi, they both decided to head over to Yata's apartment to grab some of his stuff, but Fushimi sees it as a minor priority and that they should concentrate more on finding and catching Strains.

"Think about it, Misaki," the taller says exasperatedly. "If we get your clothes now, we'll have to return to my apartment and put them away. And then we have to come back out and start patrolling... We can always get your clothes in the evening," Fushimi explains while giving his companion a leer.

Yata glares at the taller boy in retaliation and jabs him on the chest with his free hand. "And if we get it later, we'll be too tired and you'd complain even more, do you really expect me to wear this again? I don't think so you monkey!"

Fushimi clicks his tongue and ignores Yata's outburst. He eventually gave in and follows Yata to his apartment. It wasn't that far from Homra and it wasn't that big either, as to be expected from the shorter boy. They passed through the gate and went over to the elevator where they spend the next few moments in silence.

"I'll just grab a couple of clothes, put them in a duffle bag and then we can leave, it won't take long anyway," Yata says while leering at his taller companion knowing that Fushimi is slightly irritated by now. "Not like you have any choice anyway,"

Fushimi sees the short grin his companion flashes and is quite surprised by it, but he didn't comment on the sudden show. Yata's room isn't big, but it isn't small either which is great for someone who lives on his own. The walls are painted beige and the place itself is rather tidy, save for some clothes strewn at the back of the couch and on the bed.

Yata quickly gathers as many clothes as he could fit in his duffle bag before walking out of his apartment room. To Fushimi, that's his first time being in Yata's new place, ever since they went their ways, they had moved out of living together and got their own place far from one another.

As they walk down the street, Fushimi decides to start some small talk just to make the string longer; at least he'll have some space slightly further from the other boy. Seriously, people are staring at them strangely.

"So, how many times did you change apartments? That place looks somewhat new," Fushimi asks languidly hoping Yata won't ask him so many questions. Normally he's the one who listens; talking exactly isn't his forte to begin with. "And it doesn't even have your smell in it,"

The shorter boy stares at his companion unbelievingly. "What kind of a question is that? And what do you mean it doesn't have my smell yet, what is wrong with you? Seriously Saru, that sounds creepy as hell!" Yata spat out and inches away slightly causing Fushimi to smirk. Now that they're stuck like this, might as well enjoy the moment.

"Normally when you move into a house, your scent will stick to the wall and furniture. But that little apartment of yours hardly have your smell which shows that you recently moved in, isn't it?" the younger of the two asks and leans forward to Yata who now supports a blush that can rival a tomato.

Pushing the blue clansman's face away, Yata turns away so that he wouldn't have to look Fushimi in the eyes. "You're seriously being creepy, how the heck do you even know that? Jeez..." he stutters slightly as he tries his best to calm his racing heart. However, Fushimi won't have any of that and rests his chin on the other's shoulder.

To make it worse for the shorter teen, Fushimi then proceeds to blow puffs of warm air to his ear causing goosebumps to appear all over his skin. "The heck do you think you're doing?" Yata lashes out and tries to punch the other boy, but Fushimi merely pulls back with a mischievous chuckle.

"Don't be so uptight, Misaki," Fushimi grins playfully and skillfully dodges every punch the other boy lashes out. "I was only trying to warm your ears, they look rather red," he points out. Yata then pulls his beanie down his ears and glares spitefully at the blue clansman.

"I don't need you to warm them up, they're already warm! And stop being so creepy the whole time will you! I thought you're on the lookout for those Strain girls!" Yata admonishes loudly causing the people around them to look their direction. This somehow made Yata quieter as they make their way back to Fushimi's apartment.

Clicking his tongue, Fushimi looks around him and glares at whoever decides to make eye contact with him. Fishing for his PDA, Fushimi proceeds to scroll over the pictures of wanted Strains just so he wouldn't miss any of them. If the Vice-Captain knows, he'll probably have one hell of overtime by the time the cuffs are gone.

Yata silently watches his friend from beside him and decides that if they want to shorten their search, then he'd have to help along, despite really not wanting to. "Hey Saru," he calls out. Fushimi looks at him with that bored look but Yata could see the hidden spark behind his eyes. "Two sets of eyes is better than one, let me take a look on those Strains you're hunting and I'll help you find them,"

Fushimi raises an eyebrow at the stuttering offer, but he doesn't question it. He hands over his PDA to Yata who accepts it with a slightly red face. A small smile marred the blue clansman's face when he realizes that they're getting along much better than they use to. And if Yata actually offers to help, then that means they're going somewhere with this whole red string of bond thing.

"There sure are many Strains around here," Yata mumbles out when he scrolls down the list. "Are you searching for all of them?" he asks when he returns the PDA. Fushimi only shrugs half-heartedly and nods his head in affirmation.

"Some of the Strains only move at night, some Strains move underground and some Strains go under disguise, like that Strain the Silver King has and that horse," Fushimi explains to Yata hoping he knows which horse he's talking about. Yata contemplates a little when he finally remembers Basashi and all the insanity that happened that day.

"You mean Basashi? How's that horse doing?" he asks with a smile, no doubt remembering the fun times he had chasing the horse with everyone. He still can't believe Bandou got kicked to the face along with that Blue clansman who was in the vehicle. He should've recorded that!

Fushimi frowns slightly when he sees Yata so happy. But upon realizing that he's remembering their deceased companions, he lets that slide. "You called the horse 'Basashi'? Seriously?" he quirks a brow when he asks that. Why would they name a horse after a horse dish? That's just one hell of a bad joke.

"Uhh...yeah, it was Mikoto-san who named it, Anna wasn't happy though," Yata answers lowly, hurt flickering behind those bright brown eyes at the thought of his lost King. Fushimi is silent when Yata reminisces, he doesn't trust his words or his temper if he's to start talking now. It'll just make them more strained than usual.

After a few short while, Fushimi finally speaks. "At least that's better than what the Vice-Captain calls it," he said with a facepalm. Yata looks at him curiously, wanting to know what that woman had renamed Basashi. "White bean paste stewed tofu, that's what she calls it," Fushimi deadpans.

Yata's jaws nearly hit the floor when he heard the horse's new name. That sounds even worse than 'Basashi', it sounds like she actually wants to turn the horse Strain into a stewed tofu and pour white bean paste all over it. The image made the skateboarder shudder and he could feel a lump in his throat.

"That sounds disgusting," he mutters. Fushimi only nods his head in agreement as they continue to make their way to Fushimi's apartment. Unfortunately for them, their walk had to be cut short when they notice something peculiar at a nearby shop that was closed. Yata uses his sharp eyes to keenly check out what was going on.

Much to his horror and surprise, he could see some brutes pushing a little girl into a black car. He could clearly see that the girl is bounded and scared out of her wits, and a gun pointed to her head. "Hey Saru," Yata voices out hurriedly to which the taller boy grunts in reply. "That kid's being kidnapped!"

Fushimi's eyes went slightly wide and he too stares at the scene unfolding before him. It's a good thing that it's his left hand that's bounded, or else he'd never be able to use his saber. "Hey! Release that child!" he calls out harshly to the brutes. They notice his presence and quickly shove the crying girl into the back seat of the car before speeding off.

Fushimi releases his aura and strikes the back of the car, creating an X mark so he'd know which car to chase. He turns to Yata who simply stares at the whole ordeal in shock.

"If we're going to help bring that kid back, then we need to work together for this," Fushimi says. Yata seems somewhat flabbergasted at the suggestion but when he looks down at their bounded wrists, he can only sigh. Fushimi's right, he's got no choice and they need to work together if they want to stop those brutes and bring the girl back in one piece.

"Fine," Yata spat out. "But can you even keep up with me on skateboard?" he asks apprehensively. He doesn't want to drag the other boy in case he couldn't keep up, and he certainly doesn't want to run either.

Fushimi clicks his tongue and sheaths his saber. "You underestimate me, Misaki. I might actually be faster than you even if you're on your skateboard. And we should get going; we wasted too much time here,"

And with that, Yata got up to his skateboard and start to go as fast as he could with Fushimi beside him. The blue clansman pulls out his PDA and hacks into the traffic cameras to see which direction the brutes had gone to. After getting the car's location, he guides Yata on where to go.

"They're going south-east towards a bridge, and they're going fast. There's a shortcut to the bridge, make sure you turn left at that junction there," Fushimi says and points the direction. Yata nods in affirmation and did as he was told. He was rather surprised to see Fushimi still going fast and not loosing breath at all. Yata guesses that Scepter 4 does training like hell.

The two made their way as fast as they can, avoiding pedestrians and jumping over cars to get to the kidnappers. Once Fushimi sees the X marked car, he unsheathes his saber and with as much power as he could muster, he strikes the car's back tires causing them to explode.

"You got them!" Yata shouts happily whilst pumping his fist in the air. The sudden nostalgic feeling when he used to work together like this with Fushimi was pushed to the very back of his mind. He doesn't need to remember what was once his happy days, those days will never come back after all.

Fushimi however, doesn't look like he's finished just yet. "Not yet, Misaki. They still have the girl as a hostage and a gun loaded with bullets. Until we get them to jail, we're not celebrating," Fushimi says, his eyes hard and dead-on at the stopped car. Yata's powerless now and he doesn't have his baseball bat with him, not to mention their bounded state, moving is somewhat restricted.

As if sensing what the other is thinking, Yata puts down his bag and rests a foot on his board, tensing his body for the oncoming fight. "Then stop talking and start punching, I want to get those Strain girls so that they can break this thing,"

And with that, the two moves quickly towards the car where the three brutes have come out and pulled their guns out. The surrounding people screamed and ran when they fired but Yata and Fushimi dodge their shots easily. The skateboarder isn't going to give up because he's lost his powers, but because he's been under Homra and the Red King for so long, fighting is practically a part of him now.

Fushimi retracts his knives and with quick precision, he aims it at one of the brute's arm and his gun. The other two continues to shoot and the boy uses those knives to create a shield for the both of them. Once they got closer to them, Yata jumps up and slams his skateboard against another one of the brute's face, knocking him out cold.

The third brute, after realizing he's been cornered, decides to ditch his gun and his friends before turning tail and fled. But Yata and Fushimi would have none of that and with a well aimed kick to his chest and a slash on his back, the brute fell to the ground unconscious. Fushimi pulls out his PDA and calls for backup as Yata punches the injured brute so that he too falls unconscious.

"That'll teach them not to mess with us," Yata says with a satisfied grin. Fushimi could feel his throat clenching at the words. 'Us', that is a word that he hasn't used in such a long time, and it just hurts so much when he heard Yata say it again. He knows that things have change, and that the past will stay as the past no matter how hard he tries.

With the brutes taken care of and Scepter 4 agents are on their way, Yata and Fushimi decides to check on the girl in the car. They cut the ropes binding her wrists and pulls out the gag from her mouth. Fushimi and Yata notes that the girl is just a child, very young but has quite a pretty face.

"Thank you! Thank you for saving me!" she cries in gratitude. Yata blushes slightly and turns away, mumbling a no problem while Fushimi helps her out of the car. Not long after, a few Scepter 4 vehicles came into view and a few members come out, including the Blue King himself.

Yata and Fushimi seem somewhat skeptical when they see the Captain walking out towards them, and they're even more skeptical when he smiles as if he knows something they don't. Yata doesn't really trust the man but he's helped them in figuring out the cuffs and string so far, so he somewhat owes him, somewhat.

"Fushimi-kun, Yata-kun, you seem to work together just well nowadays. I take it being bound together has done you good?" he asks with that cold and amused tone. Fushimi huffs indignantly and looks down at the string where he's very surprised to see the string so long. Even Yata seems quite surprised at the length.

They didn't answer the King, knowing that he'd tease them more about it. After getting the brutes into the vehicles and taking the girl along with them to find her home, Yata and Fushimi watch the others leave silently. They didn't talk about what just happened, and they didn't talk about their string getting quite long.

"Hey Saru," Yata starts out slowly. Fushimi turns to the shorter boy who made a move to grab his bag. "Can we go home now? It's late and I really want to get out of these clothes," he said with a grumble. Fushimi grunts in reply, but he couldn't help but tease Yata for his choice of words.

"You want to get out of those clothes, Misaki?" he drawls out playfully causing Yata to realize where this is going and blushing beet red. "I can get you out of these clothes if you want. And perhaps help you put on new ones too," Fushimi teases as he languidly pulls the other's collar down.

Yata tries his best to push the other off of him. "Stop doing that you crazy, perverted monkey! Don't twist my words into something so insane!" he shrieks indignantly while trying to shove Fushimi from his face. The heat on his cheeks just makes him realize how hard he's blushing right now.

Fushimi only grins as he releases his companion and starts to walk back to his apartment. Yata follows a little behind him, since the string has gotten quite long, he doesn't need to be so close to the other anymore. But he knows that somewhere deep in his heart, he wants to stay by the other's side.

So without even caring if his blush is still there or not, Yata quickens his pace and walks beside the taller boy but doesn't look him in the eyes. Fushimi smiles lightly at the scenario and enjoys the feeling while he still can.

After that, he's going to mercilessly tease the skateboarder once they reach his apartment.

* * *

Hmm..Fushimi teasing Yata and being a total freak..yeah, sounds like him. And don't you just love the little tease I put at the top there? Makes you wonder if this is SaruMi or not, doesn't it? *grins* Yes well..I like to keep you all on your toes so if you want to know if it's SaruMi or not, then you'd have to read this until the end. *winks*

Well, there you have it, Kidnap. I hope I'm not making GoRa mad by putting words starting with 'k' at every beginning of the chapter, after all, K does belong to him.

Anyways, my sinus problem is acting up again and I'd better get my medicine. Drop me a review and tell me what you think. *smile*


	5. Knuckleduster

This took a while..sorry about that, I came down with a HORRIBLE fever for a few days and I can hardly move. I puked several times, I almost blacked out at the staircase -I have a large winding staircase, mind you- and was sent to the hospital to get a shot to stop my fever from getting any higher. Hence why this update took some time, so I hope you all understand.

Also, thank you to those who reviewed, faved and alerted me, that's a wonderful 'get well soon' gift for me even if you don't know about my fever *laughs* Anyways, best not to keep you waiting. This chapter is where things go bad..so grab your hardhats and hold on.

* * *

The next morning, Fushimi and Yata starts off their daily patrol again after getting some breakfast at some nearby fast food restaurant. Yata had admonished Fushimi for not eating his vegetables again but he was ignored and told to shut up. He then teases the skateboarder about his tall glass of milk and how drinking that won't help him grow anymore seeing how they're at the end of their growth spurt. Yata however, believes it isn't too late for him.

As they stroll down the street, their eyes are wide and keen for any Strains or anyone suspicious. After the whole kidnapping incident, they believe that not everyone is as they seem. The weather is fairly warm too as Japan nears spring, but people are still needed to wear thick clothes to keep them from the biting cold wind.

Yata however, still wears those green shorts and it makes Fushimi wonder if he ever feels cold. He continues to stare at Yata's bare legs, not noticing that the skateboarder had caught him looking his way and blushing slightly.

"Oi, what the hell are you staring at, damn monkey," he grumbles out as Fushimi simply grunts and pushes his glasses up his nose. The string had gotten quite long and they too had gotten along quite well, but they still have their occasional fights and banter, but the string doesn't shorten drastically now, as if knowing they're simply teasing each other.

"Just checking whether those legs of your actually have cold receptors. Made me wonder if you actually feel cold or that after getting that useless power from that useless group had made you immune to feel cold altogether," the Scepter 4 agent huffs out indignantly, causing Yata to seethe in anger.

The skateboarder quickens his pace and stood in front of his companion, eyes blazing in anger and if Fushimi were to look closely, extreme hurt.

"What is it with you?" Yata starts out as calmly as possible but with enough malice in his voice that could even make Kusanagi tremble in fear. "First you betrayed Homra and me, went to Scepter 4 and became one with those Blues, and then you talk as if you know Homra in the slightest! You know nothing about us!"

By the time he spat out the last word, he had grabbed Fushimi by the collar and could perfectly see the burnt scar, though the Homra tattoo had long disappear with the death of the Red King.

Fushimi clicks his tongue and pushes Yata's hands away from his collar coldly, causing the boy to look at him disbelievingly. "All I know is that you people are nothing more than a bunch of thugs causing ruckus wherever you go. Really Misaki, I still don't get what you see in that barbaric man you call a 'King', all I ever saw was someone that was needed to be killed. And I'm glad the Captain had done the deed,"

The younger of the two quickly regretted saying that when he sees droplet of tears dripping down the other boy's cheeks, though his eyes are shielded from his view, he could see and feel the hurt and sadness in that small body. He made a move to pat Yata and say he didn't mean to say those words but the skateboarder's fists were much faster.

With one powerful swing from his free hand, he brought Fushimi down causing him to stumble to his knees. The string had shortened so much that the cuffs are practically stuck together after their fight and that had effectively brought Misaki down on top of Fushimi. The people surrounding them were very surprised when they saw the fight, some even asking if they needed help but they were only brushed away coldly.

The boys got back up soundlessly and stood quite far from each other, except that their hands are bound together but right now, neither of them seems to even care. Fushimi pushes his glasses back that was knocked askew and starts walking.

"We don't have time for this stupidity, we just need to find those Strain girls and make them break this crazy spell, and you and I can go back to our usual lives. And when I said usual lives, I meant it. Best if don't see each other after this,"

Yata's eyes were wide when Fushimi said that but because the taller is walking a few paces ahead of him, he didn't see Yata's surprised expression. The skateboarder didn't say anything afterwards, only following his companion through the streets and searching for the Strain girls. Unbeknownst to them, they were watched and listened by the very girls they wanted to capture.

Ayame has an expression of pure murder when she heard the boys' conversation while Yua only looks rather sad. "I had anticipated they would fight like this should old wounds be brought up," Yua sighs out. "If they don't make up by second dawn, then those cuffs will cause one of them great pain, presumably the shorter one,"

Ayame only scoffs and leans back the alley walls as Yua peeks out to see the boys. "Why not? They're a couple of idiots anyway. Those cuffs and strings aren't just that, they judge one's bond and if they fight seriously, I don't see why one of them shouldn't be punished. Yatagarasu should suffer like that other boy, crippled and half-dead,"

Yua however, doesn't approve of Ayame's choice of punishment. "That was a mistake, Ayame! Don't ever do that again! I can't believe you'd choose such method, this isn't torturing! No, what those two needs is just a push, but we'll see in two days. If they don't make up by then, well...Lord helps them,"

The two then disappears off without another trace as the boys continue to look for them. Though their wrists are bonded, that doesn't stop Fushimi from walking a few steps ahead of the shorter boy. Yata doesn't say a word to the sudden silence, not that he has any reason to talk too.

As they continue to walk in silence, Yata could feel his resolve breaking. It wasn't his fault that he punched the other boy, Fushimi just needs to know that he doesn't deal with people well when push comes to shove. And Fushimi had clearly crossed the line just now by insulting the very person he practically worships. Unable to handle the silence any longer, Yata grabs Fushimi by the shoulder and spun him around.

"Why the heck did you do that?" he asks in a seethe. Fushimi merely stares at him blankly and clicks his tongue.

"You really have to be more specific..." the blue answers back in his usual monotonous voice and looking away from Yata to look around him. Yata grabs his attention by yanking their bounded wrists harshly.

"Look at me when I'm talking to you, bastard!" the skateboarder yells out as Fushimi lazily turns his attention to his companion.

_I always do, Misaki. Talking, laughing, screaming, I've always looked at you. But you were the one who averted your gaze from me..._ Fushimi thought ruefully. He continues to stare at the shorter boy as he spews curses at him.

"You think you can just walk around with your head held high and saying things about Homra you hardly know? News flash, Saru! You're one of the most pathetic person I've ever met and you shouldn't pretend to be someone you're not! Doesn't Homra mean anything to you?" Yata shrieks out as he pulls them both towards an old building so that they don't attract the public eye.

Fushimi stays quiet, allowing the other boy to finish his rant before saying his words. Truth be told, he's not interested in Homra, but he's got Yata's attention now, and that's what's important to him. What's always been important to him ever since he became friends with the skateboarder.

Clicking his tongue, Fushimi pins Yata to the wall of the building with his free hand, causing the shorter boy to glare venomously up at him.

"I told you didn't I? Homra is nothing more than a place where hoodlums group together and putting some sort of beast from the slums as their leader. There's nothing more to Homra than that, and I wasn't like any of you so leaving was inevitable. Betrayal's my identity, Misaki..." he breathes out the last word to the boy's ear creepily causing Yata to lash out by giving him an uppercut.

And with that, Fushimi leans back and unsheathes his saber despite the throbbing pain at his chin. Though their wrists are stuck together, that doesn't stop them from exchanging blows with each other. Punches and slashes were going in quick successions as neither wants to back down. Yata is fueled by Fushimi's smug grin, Fushimi's fueled by the need to be noticed.

The skateboarder couldn't hide the fact that he's extremely hurt by his friend's decision to betray Homra. They were once together, so close and inseparable under the command of Suoh Mikoto. But for some unknown reason, Fushimi had to destroy that happiness and that close bond by betraying Homra, betraying him. That thought alone is enough to fuel his anger and his punches increases in speed and power.

Fushimi however, seems to be able to dodge those powerful punches without breaking a sweat or even loosing his trademark psychotic grin. He continues to slash his saber around and managing to cut Yata in various places, making the shorter teen bleed profusely. Though the wounds aren't deep, Fushimi knows the human body enough to slice through the skin that holds the pressure points causing extreme pain.

And true enough, after a few short while, Yata collapses to his knees with his shirt stained crimson red and dripping slightly with his own blood. Fushimi seems to be in a better shape but already the dark bruises starting to form on his face and various parts of his body, though his legs still support him, his body shakes violently as it tries to support the injuries. With one final blow to his knee by Yata's fist, Fushimi collapses to the ground and bring the shorter boy with him.

Hard pants and wheezes are the only noises in the old building as the two teens gather their breaths and energy. They notice that the cuffs are glowing a bright and bloody-coloured red, and its temperature seems to have risen too as they can feel their skin slowly heating up. A sign as if the cuffs are saying that it's there for a reason. The boys however, paid it no mind as they continue to regain their breathing.

"You're an ass," Yata says slowly as he gets his heart under control. Fushimi didn't retort to those words, only keeping to himself as he slowly regains his energy. His saber is a few meters ahead of him after Yata managed to knock it out of his hands, resulting in Fushimi having to use his fist too.

He grins to himself when he realizes that even when bounded together in this state, they're both able to fight in perfect coordination such as when they helped the girl from being kidnapped, and again when they have a fight not a few moments ago. All this because they once fought together and for each other.

Back when they were in high school and Yata was almost pummeled to the ground while he went off to buy a game, back when they had to search for Anna's information in the Gold King's Strain institute, back when they were living off the streets only trying to survive... Those days they only have each other, and on each other they rely on. Until that day where Suoh Mikoto shows up in front of them and displaying raw power in front of Yata's eyes.

And everything was burnt, turned to ashes and destroyed before his very eyes.

And ever since then, Yata doesn't look at him anymore. And to make matters worse, he was appointed as Homra's vanguard, the third strongest of the group next to the King and their Second; Izumo. Fushimi couldn't take it, day by day he had to endure that his most precious person is slowly slipping through his grasp and his cry for attention being ignored. And the only way to regain his position in Yata's heart is by joining Scepter 4.

And so he did. Though it isn't a friendly attention he had gained, he'd have what he can have; Yata's hate.

Friendship be damned. Yata doesn't see him in that light anymore. To him, Fushimi's nothing more than a dirty traitor that can't be trusted with anything. It pained the blue clansman that their relationship had gone astray, but he couldn't help it. There's nothing in this world that matters more than Yata Misaki, and only Yata Misaki grabs his attention. Not school, not games, not the Red or Blue King, only Yata and Yata alone.

Despite his injuries, Fushimi shakily gets up to his feet and drags Yata along, though he still keeps quiet and doesn't look at the other boy in the eye. He retrieves his saber and sheathes it before finally turning to stare at Yata.

"And you're still clueless, doesn't make you any less of an idiot. Let's just go home and clean up, I don't want to waste anymore time," was Fushimi's bland reply. Yata's breath hitches slightly when he realizes that Fushimi is giving him the cold and silent treatment. The skateboarder retrieves his skateboard and silently follows the other back to his apartment.

Through the whole walk, Fushimi didn't say anything, and Yata made no move to apologize too. They just walk in silence and ignoring the other's presence, causing the cuffs to glow a brighter red. This is the biggest fight they've have ever since Fushimi's betrayal, not even the fights in Ashinaka High was this intense, or caused this much of a gap between them despite being stuck so close.

That night, they slept with their backs facing each other, not even caring that their hands are bounded like a hanging bridge between them. The silence only amplifies the coldness now spreading around them both.

* * *

Well..that's that, and it's a page short so..yeah, I blame the fever for making me so lethargic. I'm getting somewhat better, but I'm still dreary and my cough is hurting me more than my headache so the next chapter will also take some bit of time. I won't be home the entire day tomorrow because I have a driving test -here's to hoping my condition doesn't worsen- so I won't be writing tomorrow.

Don't worry though, I'll write the day after and perhaps the next chapter will be longer and be up faster. Wish me luck~ And don't forget to send me a couple of thoughts on this chapter!


	6. Kirk

The next day, the two resume their daily patrol but this time, neither of them is acknowledging each other. Fushimi mostly looks around but no longer looking at Yata, and Yata's more immersed in his PDA to even care for the other teen. The string and cuffs around their wrists are also burning to the touch but neither seems to even notice the searing pain shooting up their arms, all they want is to get the patrol done and over, or even find the Strain girls so that they can go about their daily lives again.

Breakfast was quieter than usual for them, with Yata casting occasional glances at Fushimi to see if he's cracked, but the other boy was so immersed in his newspaper and scotch that he had looked as if he doesn't even care he's sharing a table with the very same person he pines attention to. And this irks Yata, a lot. Not that he cares now, Fushimi's nothing more than a traitor after all.

As they walk in silence, they fail to notice the Strain girls on one of the rooftop buildings watching them from above. Neither of the girls looks happy but they didn't comment on the straining relationship between the boys. The cuffs will judge their bond on its own and provide the right punishment if they don't make up tomorrow.

Fushimi and Yata passes by them without even knowing they're there and the girls silently following them by jumping from rooftop to rooftop. They make sure that they mask their presence so Fushimi doesn't detect them, Scepter 4 agents have keen senses, especially if he's also a part of Homra in the past.

However, Fushimi isn't a genius for a reason. He stops all of a sudden, causing the girls to panic slightly and duck down behind the railing so Fushimi wouldn't see them. He looks up and scans the area while Yata stays quiet beside him, waiting to see what he does. Clicking his tongue, Fushimi decides to go up the building through one way he knows how; by jumping up the lamp post and launch himself upwards as high as he can from there.

Yata shrieks when he suddenly found himself airborne and landing in a heap next to Fushimi who silently scans the surrounding area.

"What the heck was that about? Can't you at least give me some warning before you want to do that?" Yata hisses out venomously as he rubs his sore bottom. Fushimi clicks his tongue once more and turns to the shorter boy next to him, grinning in the slightest bit.

"So you're the first one to crack? And here I thought you won't talk to me in another three days," the taller of the two mocks in his usual teasing tone. Yata turns red slightly but he didn't say a word, only standing up to brush himself clean of the dust on the roof. He too looks around, but he couldn't find anyone else there.

"You don't just do that for no reason, stupid monkey. Why the heck were you flying off all of a sudden? I don't see anyone up here, save for some pigeons," Yata shot back. Fushimi shrugs nonchalantly and walks around the roof, to make sure that nothing really is there before going back down on the ground to resume his patrol.

"I thought I felt a presence where someone was watching us from up here, not my fault if I become a little paranoid," Fushimi retorts back while popping the joints in his neck, causing Yata to wince slightly. He never liked it whenever Fushimi does that, makes him sound as if he's trying to break his neck.

Yata only raises a brow when he heard Fushimi's explanation. "You? Paranoid? I don't think those words go in one sentence, Saru. I don't feel anyone watching us from just now, I would've felt it,"

"Would you?" Fushimi asks amusedly. "I think the whole reason you didn't feel it is because you're a little too short to detect it, so that presence didn't really get to you I suppose," he laughs mockingly causing Yata to hit him on the shoulder.

"I'm not short, you stupid telephone pole!" the skateboarder shouts back vehemently causing Fushimi to laugh mockingly at him. The two then jumps back down to the ground swiftly, causing a few passerby to jump back in shock and even screaming in terror. The teenagers however, paid no mind and continue with their patrol as if nothing happened.

Ayame and Yua, who managed to hide in time, scowl deeply at the display. They had thought that the boys would put the past behind them and be friends again, but apparently even their near capture didn't help easing things any further. "I want Yatagarasu to be electrified," Ayame deadpans while folding her arms across her chest.

Yua slaps the girl upside her head and shoots her a disapproving look before going back up the roof to trail the boys as silently as she could. Ayame curses vehemently when she was slapped but follows Yua nonetheless, she wants to see if the boys would realize their mistake and starts to make up or else the cuffs will take matters into its own hands.

In the next few uninteresting hours, the boys had walked nearly half of Shizume City and still they haven't found the Strain girls, or any Strains at all. This irks Fushimi to no end as he furiously types over his PDA to see if he's missed anyone he was supposed to search while Yata looks around for any good shops to buy some snacks.

Just as Fushimi was about to continue his patrol, his hand were yanked by Yata and he turns to stare at the shorter boy in his usual bored look.

"Hey Saru, we haven't eaten anything for lunch yet, you want to buy some doughnuts from that shop?" Yata says out hungrily. Fushimi could see how those ember eyes shine with anticipation to get some food into his system, so he agrees quietly. The two made their way into the shop and got a few bag of doughnuts before walking out, Yata already devouring his first doughnut.

Fushimi merely watches the other eat silently, his own bag clutched in his free hand untouched. Yata paid Fushimi no mind if he wants to eat or not, they're still a little cold with each other after what happened yesterday, and if they're subjected to talk, only a few words suffice before they return to a state of silence.

After a while, the sky starts to darken and people are scrambling to get under roofs and bringing their umbrellas out in case it decided to rain. Though still technically winter, the weather is now warm enough to stop snow from forming and causing rain instead, but the temperature can still drop beyond freezing when it does rain.

Fushimi and Yata looks up at the darkening sky and decides to find somewhere they can find shelter when the rain suddenly pours down without a warning, causing those who still remain on the road to scamper about and find shelter.

"Really? Not a single warning?" Yata curses as he and Fushimi made a mad dash towards an old church up ahead. The church looks worn down and old, as if no one's been there to take care of it for years. But then again it's in quite a secluded area of Shizume City, not surprising that it's been abandoned. Though the church still stands tall with the glass windows still intact and the angel carvings only covered with vines and moss. Not a stone or marble out of place.

The two enters the church and Yata pulls out his soaked beanie from his head to avoid getting a headache from the cold temperature as Fushimi wipes his foggy glasses. The skateboarder inspects his surrounding and is quite amazed at the size of the chapel; he's never seen a church so huge before.

"What kind of church is this?" he asks in awe. Fushimi keeps his glasses in his pocket and runs a hand through his drenched hair with a sigh. He too looks around the place and tries to recall something about the church and its stories. He's not really a religious person, but he visited here sometimes when he was still very young to get some food from the nuns and pastors.

"This was once run by a group of bishops and nuns when I was very young, and back when Shizume city's still growing. The church is for those who don't have any place to stay, or to those who have nothing left in the world," Fushimi starts off as he sat down on one of the benches. Yata seems quite interested in the story, so he too sat down next to Fushimi, not like he has a choice; they're still bounded after all.

"I used to visit here back then, to ask for some scraps of food and a shelter whenever my parents are fighting at home," the bitter tone in Fushimi's voice made Yata feel a little uncomfortable. Fushimi hardly talks about his past, and Yata doesn't want to press because he knows that it can never be pretty.

When Fushimi stops there, Yata decides to push his luck. "You don't stay at home when they fight?" he asks. Fushimi suddenly becomes tense and Yata flinches at the sudden display, but the taller teen relaxes again and with eyes void of emotion, he shook his head.

"How can I? They'd be screaming and throwing things at each other, insulting, hitting, abusing, you name it. Not really a normal fight. So I left whenever they argue seriously, I'm tired of crying so while I was ambling about, I saw this church and the nuns brought me in. They gave me food and a place to stay for the night before I head back home when morning comes,"

Yata stays quiet throughout the whole story. He's never known that Fushimi would have such painful childhood, but then again his own childhood doesn't shine with happiness either. Being abandoned and having to fend for oneself at such a young age, stealing, fighting, and doing anything in the hopes of survival just to see another sunrise.

Fushimi then felt a hand on his shoulder, snapping him out of his most painful pasts. Yata stares at him silently, with ember eyes glowing with energy that held such gentleness in them. A true embodiment of fire. Fushimi was about to snap at him that he doesn't need the vanguard's pity when Yata smiles at him. A true, genuine, heart warming smile.

"You're not the only one with a hard past, Saruhiko," Yata starts out slowly. He was never good with words, but many people had said he wears his heart on his sleeves so he's hoping that his emotions would help him in conveying what he's trying to say. But then again, Fushimi's a genius, and they were best friends for a few years once.

"I was abandoned as a kid, got no one to hold on to and no where to turn. You were lucky to even find this place, at least you have somewhere to go and ask for food when you don't have any, I had to be a ninja," Yata grins out. Fushimi raises a brow at the small attempt at humor, but he accepts it gladly. He can see that the vanguard is trying to cheer him by sharing his stories, and for that he's thankful.

The burning pain that the two have been trying to ignore slowly disappears from their wrists. When they look down, the cuffs are glowing a gentle red light again, and the string connecting them both is slowly extending between them. Not long, but it's enough to show that the two are doing some progress at making up.

The rain outside is still pouring with a vengeance, a total storm where no one should even be outside right now. The calming atmosphere of the church eases both their emotions and even made Fushimi feel light enough to forget about their heated argument yesterday and playfully teasing Yata about his lack of nutrition ever since as a child.

Yata is irked slightly at the teasing, but he's somewhat glad to see Fushimi in his usual mischievous mood and not openly showing hostility like before. Truth be told, he's never had Fushimi giving him the cold treatment before, and he didn't like it one bit.

"Hey Saru, you still have your doughnut with you?" Yata asks as he notices the bag sitting beside Fushimi. The taller of the two lazily looks down at the bag sitting innocently beside him and nods his head. "That thing's probably soggy by now; you might want to eat it before it's spoilt completely,"

Fushimi only clicks his tongue in annoyance and hands the bag to Yata who looks up at him curiously. "You eat it, I was never hungry in the first place," was what Fushimi said. The skateboarder narrows his eyes and accepts the bag before fishing the somewhat soggy doughnut out. It's not spoilt, but the taste would be bland now that the sugary top is gone. He then splits the doughnut in half before handing one half to the blue.

"You have to eat, or else I'll have to shove this down your throat. You're already lanky enough as it is, so don't make yourself a skeleton. Eat this," Yata says as he shoves the doughnut piece up Fushimi's face. The blue clansman blushes very subtly at the gesture, but he eats the doughnut anyway.

Although instead of taking it out of Yata's hand to hold it himself, he gently lifts Yata's wrist a little higher with his free hand before taking a bite out of the doughnut. The way he lifts the vanguard's wrist is similar to how a gentleman would hold the hand of his dance partner at a ball, causing Yata to blush furiously as Fushimi continues to eat the doughnut half until he finishes it.

The vanguard is just so surprised that his brain practically shorted out, stopping him from breaking the mood by screaming and sputtering. Fushimi merely smirk when he realizes how red he'd made the shorter boy look. "Misaki, are you alright?" he calls out in his usual, sing-song voice.

With that said, Yata regains control of his brain and voice, sputtering and blushing like mad as he tries to scramble away from Fushimi. The cold wind then burst in through the crevices of the church and turning the area freezing cold and Yata shivering not a moment later. Seeing the shorter boy almost freezing his butt off, Fushimi made a last attempt to keep them both warm.

He pulls the shorter boy close to him and envelope him in a tight hug.

Yata blushes like mad before struggling to get free. "Saru! What do you think you're doing? Let go of me right now!" he shouts vehemently as he tries to break free of the other boy's strong grasp. Fushimi only holds him closer and tighter, rendering Yata exhausted after having to thrash around looking for escape.

The vanguard gave up on escaping. Fushimi's body is actually very warm and comfortable, and Yata actually misses these small moments where they'd just sit together in each others' arms and dozing off lightly. Much to Yata's surprise, Fushimi starts to hum an old lullaby that they both listen to when they wee younger. Slowly but surely, the two boys fell asleep in each other's arms and wrapped in each other's warmth.


	7. Kerfuffle

Apparently I completely forgot to write some notes for the previous chapter, my bad! I was in such a hurry that it slipped my mind. Oh, my fever broke, so I'm completely better now, save for some cough that's rather resilient still in my throat. And also..I GOT MY LEARNER'S PERMIT~! Ahh..driving is fun, and my teacher allowed me to drive all the way home too! Now to continue learning so I can have my true driving license!

Anyways, I see all of you enjoyed the previous chapter, with the first review I got being 'Beautiful!', thank you sir guest! *laughs* So now I present to you chapter 7; Kerfuffle, or known as, chaos. Go look it up for extra infos. Enjoy..

* * *

After settling things and actually understanding each other a little more, the boys came off much better and friendlier with each other. Fushimi doesn't tease Yata about his height and virginity as much anymore, coming out more compassionate and a lot less creepy. Yata on the other hand doesn't explode with bursts of anger and has become more tolerable of the other boy. With their feelings off of their chests a little, they became quite a team.

When the rain had stopped, it was late and the sky was already darkening so they decided to call it in for the day. The journey home was less awkward too as they talked more about their daily lives, games and even remembering old times when they still finish each others' foods and listening to songs on the bus. Somewhere along the line, Fushimi was smiling and this brought attention to Yata who then lightly teased him for it.

By the time they reach Fushimi's apartment, the string and cuffs are now a gentle red, bordering pink with the string being so long, longest than they boys have ever seen. They had showered and changed to a much comfortable clothes, and Yata even suggested he cooked dinner for them both prompting Fushimi to tease him as a housewife. They had a light banter, and since they're stuck, Yata had asked for Fushimi's help in the kitchen.

Not one to love vegetables, Fushimi had refused to hand any over to Yata when the latter demanded for it causing Yata to threaten Fushimi that he won't cook dinner and that they'd have take-out instead. Fushimi threw a fit since he wanted to taste Yata's food and reluctantly handed the vegetables to the skateboarder who then chopped them into fine pieces.

Dinner had been uneventful afterwards, only that Fushimi wanted to spoon-fed Yata like how 'a good husband' would. They had another little banter with Yata cursing up a storm and blushing like mad from head to toe, but in the end he relented and allowed Fushimi to feed him once, though he was still blushing and refused any eye contact with the blue clansman.

After dinner, the boys decided to watch a little TV and Fushimi even suggested -though Yata believed it to be a tease- to cuddle together, 'to keep warm' as he puts it. At first the vanguard was adamant that they shouldn't, but Fushimi disregarded his words anyway and pulled him close, causing Yata to thrash around again. The shorter boy gave up a moment later and hesitantly wrapped his arms around the other's waist, causing Fushimi to smile very subtly.

Sleeping wasn't a problem either, Yata was so tired that he was out not long after he rested his head, and Fushimi was all too happy to take advantage of the situation by pulling the other boy close to him.

Now that morning comes, Yata once again suggests that he makes breakfast, but all Fushimi wants is a toast instead.

"How hard is it for you to actually eat something?" the skateboarder asks as he spreads some jam over the toast Fushimi had made. "You're already thin enough as it is,"

Fushimi only clicks his tongue and takes a sip of his coffee while leering at the shorter boy on his left. For some reason, he likes seeing Yata being domesticated and living with him, makes him feel like they're a pair of married couple. "Don't get your pants in a twist, Misaki. I'm not that thin anymore after that fried rice you fed me last night,"

Yata sputters indignantly and lightly thumps Fushimi on the shoulder. "Because of that comment, you're making another toast for yourself and spread the jam on your own, this one's mine," he said. Fushimi made a small whining voice but smiles behind his cup of coffee. It's great to see Yata so energetic around him and not so awkward anymore.

It's as if they never met Suoh Mikoto, and it's as if they never went their ways and suffered in silence.

Once Fushimi finishes his coffee and waiting for his toast to pop up, he eyes the half-eaten toast in Yata's hands sharply, a small plan formulating in his brain. Then without any warning whatsoever, he swoops forward and grabs a bite before pulling back looking rather satisfied. Yata is somewhat surprised by the quick action but he quickly gathers himself.

"Hey! Your toast is almost ready, why the heck did you take a bite out of mine?" he asks and turns away, hiding his toast from Fushimi to protect it from further harm. The taller teen only hums in response and eyes at the half-hidden toast expectantly. "Get your own!" Yata shouts when he notices where Fushimi is looking.

"But the toast that Misaki made tastes better, and the jam is smoother too. I want that toast but Misaki took it," Fushimi deadpans in his usual bored look, but his voice clearly shows that he's whining. Yata looks up at his friend as if he's grown another head and turns to his toast before looking up at Fushimi again.

"Did you hit your head or something, Saruhiko? What difference does it make between the toast you make and the toast I made? It's the same jam and the same bread," Yata points out the obvious but Fushimi only clicks his tongue.

The taller of the two places the fresh toast on a plate before leaning down to look at Yata straight in the eye. The skateboarder blushes like mad at the close proximity and he was about to protest when Fushimi gently wipes his mouth with a thumb. Yata could clearly see the amused smile on his face

"You've got bread crumbs all over you, Misaki. Really, you remind me of a child sometimes. But I guess there's a reason I'm here, hm?" Fushimi smiles teasingly as he continues to wipe the small bits of crumbs of Yata's blushing cheeks. The vanguard just can't do anything anymore, his blushing coupled with the sudden heat he feels around his head seems to have made him unable to think.

After breakfast, the duo once again head out to the streets where people are already used to seeing them together, so eyes are no longer on them except for a few girls who would smile a little at the two. Fushimi suspects them as fujoshis with how they'd sometimes giggle and swoon whenever he and Yata pass by.

The vanguard isn't really comfortable when those type of girls are watching him and Fushimi, but the latter would always send them off with a sharp glare, although Yata can often hear them saying how cute it was for Fushimi to protect him. That was utter embarrassment for him. But then again, better Fushimi than him dealing with the girls, he'd probably blush like mad and stutters like a broken record.

"I heard there's a Strain who's been making himself known lately; we should be on guard in case he decides to jump us," Fushimi says as they continue to walk around. Yata nods his head in understanding and looks around for anyone suspicious with his sharp eyes. Fushimi is practically as blind as a bat, so it's up to him for lookout.

In all honesty, he actually wants to be the one for lookout, it makes him feel as if he got at least something to do instead of just blindly following Fushimi everywhere. He's not actually part of patrol, but being stuck like this, might as well put his sharp eyes for good use. And Fushimi doesn't seem to mind either, he's glad he doesn't have to do anymore work than necessary.

Things went uneventful for most of the time and the boys decided to break the awkward silence by engaging in a small conversation. "So, Saru. Does your boss still use your pictures to be made into a puzzle or something?" Yata asks all of a sudden. He can clearly see Fushimi wincing a little but he kept most of his expression neutral.

"Actually nowadays, the Captain just sits in his office. But I noticed that the puzzles don't have anything to do with Scepter 4 anymore, in fact, it's a picture of that alleyway next to bar Homra. The same alleyway we used to hang out where Totsuka would sing with his guitar, and Kusanagi-san with Mikoto-san sleeping on his thighs," Fushimi answers back in a slight bitter tone.

Yata seems somewhat surprised when Fushimi said that, now why is it that the Blue King would be interested in Homra's territory? And that memory made the both of them quiet for a while, with Yata being slightly depressed at the thought that Homra is no more and Fushimi remembering the days when Yata doesn't look at him anymore.

Thinking that he needs to end what he started, Yata continues. "I guess that's better than using your pictures. Seriously Saru, the Blue King is creepy as hell," he said with a look of slight disgust. Fushimi snorts when he hears that, agreeing everything that his friend had said.

"That is why I told him to do his job instead of doing some puzzles that has our faces on it. And the only thing he did was laugh at me, _laugh at me_. Can you understand that? I wonder if it's even alright for someone who has a high authority would stalk his own members by putting cameras in the dormitories," Fushimi continues and looking rather distraught.

Yata couldn't believe what he's hearing. To know that the captain of Scepter 4 even installing cameras in his subordinates' dorm room is beyond creepy, and he thought Fushimi was bad enough in that area.

"I think he got that creepiness from you, Saru," Yata shot back with a teasing smirk on his face. Fushimi leers at him with a pointed look and nudges the skateboarder's head playfully with his free arm.

"Whoever said I was creepy?" the taller of the two asks whilst clicking his tongue.

"I do! You're seriously creepy, Saru! You know my birthday, my height, my weight, even my blood type! And the way you say my name when we first encountered at Ashinaka High was also creepy as hell!" Yata replies back vehemently. Fushimi made a small humming noise before smiling a little.

He then turns to Yata with that gentle but somewhat psychotic look in his eyes. Yata knows that look, a look of possessiveness that Fushimi is quite famous for when it comes to him. "That's because I can read you like an open book. And you really shouldn't be ignoring me, I can get very dangerous if ignored," he said with a sneer and leaning in closer to the skateboarder.

A heavy blush settles on Yata's face and he turns away in embarrassment, causing Fushimi to chuckle lightly. They continue their walk in silence until Fushimi heard a soft sound akin to a grumbling. He turns to Yata and had to bit his tongue from laughing, apparently the skateboarder's starving and his stomach just threw a fit and demanding for food.

"Shouldn't you be saying something right now? Like say...you want some lunch?" Fushimi grins out. The blush on Yata's face never left and he doesn't even want to look at Fushimi from sheer embarrassment, so the blue clansman has to drag them both to a nearby bakery to get something light to eat for lunch.

After finishing their breads, the two resume their patrol and Fushimi continues to tease Yata for being so shy about asking for food. "Really, you can just tell me when you're hungry, I'd be glad to get you something to eat," he said while affectionately patting Yata's head.

"It's fine! I wasn't that hungry anyway," Yata shot back with his cheeks a still rosy colored. As the two continues to talk and banter back and forth, they fail to notice that they're being trailed by Ayame and Yua who are watching the scene intently. Ayame is practically giddy with excitement and happiness, Yua merely smiles gently.

"That is adorable!" Ayame laughs out. "The cuffs and string are now pink in color, they're making better progress than I thought they would. If they would continue on being friendly, then those cuffs will disappear very soon,"

"I just hope they don't do anything stupid to make it turn red again," Yua voices out with a hint of worry in her voice. "If the cuffs are pink, that goes to show that their bond is rather strong, until it turns white, we still have to worry about if they can keep up being friendly with each other,"

"Red if weak, pink if somewhat stronger and pure white if the bond is at its strongest, your powers are quite amusing, Yua. I can see their bond heading to white, but they're still at the shaky state so we can't say for sure yet. Shall we continue watching them?" Ayame asks playfully as she leans her head on her friend's shoulder.

Yua smiles again and pats her friend's head affectionately. "Of course. I won't even mind if they started kissing each other too," she said before the two of them quietly slips into the darkness of the alleyways.

Back with Yata and Fushimi, the two are talking about the type of transport they prefer and why until the shrill sound of a bell alerted them to a nearby bank. Apparently there are a few gunned robbers inside and threatening to shoot everyone if they so much as make a fuss. Those outside can only call the police and unable to do anything but watch for fear of their own lives, except for the two boys.

"Apparently a couple of idiots are trying to test the flexibility of their lives, I can help with that," Fushimi says monotonously, though his face clearly shows how agitated he really is. Yata frowns deeply when he sees the petrified people in the bank and cracks his knuckles.

"And so can I, let's bust a few faces, I've been itching to get into a fight so I can get ready for those Strain girls," he growls out. Despite no longer having his aura, Yata can still fight like a skilled martial artist in sync with his board and baseball bat, so far, that's the only thing that has helped him since Mikoto's death.

The two boys then made their way inside without hesitation, Fushimi already drawing his saber out and Yata having a tight grip on his skateboard. They kick the doors open, startling the robbers who quickly aim their gums at the two teenagers.

"Who the heck are you two?" one of the robbers shouts out angrily. Three of his men are standing guard and aiming their guns at the boys while another one is busy putting money into a large sack. Fushimi clicks his tongue when he assesses the situation and deems it to be rather boring.

"Boss, that kid's part of Scepter 4!" one of the men cries out in surprise. "And I've seen the shorter kid with Suoh before," he continues when his eyes land on Yata's form. The vanguard smiles somewhat and the welling pride in him, but now isn't the time to remember old times when he still has his King by his side.

The leader of the group sneers at the two and without warning, he let loose a barrage of bullets at the two boys after seeing their cuffed hands. "There's no way you brats can dodge with how you're stuck together like that,"

Fushimi narrows his eyes and line his knives to the ground and raising the blue shield just as the shots reach them both. "I'd beg to differ," he says before slashing once at the surprised men, sending a burst of blue aura and making them stumble backwards. Yata uses that moment to leap forwards followed by Fushimi to give a swift kick to the leader's face.

"I'm glad you've met me, the name's Yatagarasu of Homra. And you bastards picked a bad day to mess with the both of us," he says menacingly as he presses his foot down the leader's throat while Fushimi backs him up from the onslaught of bullets the three men are shooting. The fourth man is still busy packing money into the bag and not registering on what's going on, but Fushimi can clearly see his movements are more frantic as he starts to panic.

"Hey lowlife," he calls out to the man. "Why don't you stop being a pig for a while," Fushimi says coldly before throwing a few knives towards the man and managing to hit him at the shoulder blades. He lets out a cry and drops the bag before gripping the hilt of the knife and yanking it out of his flesh.

"You brat!" he calls out as he and the other three men shoots at the Scepter 4 agent. Fushimi merely clicks his tongue and activates his shield again whilst looking at Yata to see how he's doing. The skateboarder had successfully knocks the leader unconscious with a few well-aimed punches and now standing beside Fushimi.

The boys focus on the four men in front of them before Fushimi lowers the shield and they dash forward. Yata grins as he slams his board against one of the robber's face and managing to knock him out cold with just one blow before turning to the other three. Fushimi doesn't seem to have any problem too as he slashes and cuts the robbers with ease.

The trapped people watch in awe as two teenage boys manage to overpower armed adult robbers who clearly outnumbered them. Some of them even cheering the teenagers as they continue to fight the remaining robbers, but unknown to any of them, the leader is slowly regaining consciousness and eyeing the skateboarder with hate.

When the last robber drops to the floor with multiple stab wounds, Fushimi and Yata comes to a stand still, watching their work with a satisfied sigh. Yata is elated that he still has his moves and that everyone is cheering for them while Fushimi fishes his PDA out to call the Vice-Captain about the robbery.

"Die and rot in hell, kid!" the leader cries out before shooting at Yata who has his back to him. Fushimi notices this and rushes forward to push his friend out of harm's way.

"Misaki!" he cries out before the bullet went straight through his chest. Everything seems to be in slow motion to the vanguard as he sees his friend falling to his knees, blood gushing out of his wound and some dripping out his mouth.

"Saruhiko!" he shouts in shock and catching Fushimi before he hits the ground. Yata picks up a nearby knife and throws it at the robber, hitting his arm deep enough to make it limp and useless so the robber is unable to hold the gun. A few adult males had jumped to the action and restraining the man before he can do anything else to harm the boys while a few calls the police and ambulance.

"Saruhiko! Oi, don't go to sleep!" Yata cries as tears stream down his face and dripping on his friend's face. Fushimi's vision is slowly darkening and he feels so very tired, all he wants to do now is just rest. With a shaky hand, he wipes the tears from the skateboarder's face, smiling weakly all the while.

The last thing he hears is Yata's frantic call for his name before darkness overtook his vision completely.

* * *

Fluffs in the beginning, tragedy in the end, and I'm pretty sure most of you hate me now..*chuckle* But what's a good story without some sort of angst or tragedy, right? I'm seriously debating whether to put this as shonen-ai or not, but then again, look at K. I'm doubting their sexuality, especially Fushimi's. But right now, this isn't shonen-ai, slight, but not official.

So now that I got you guys biting your nails and at the edge of your seats, I shall be working on the next chapter. My next class is tomorrow afternoon, so I may be able to finish one and a half page in the morning. Until then, drop me a review and tell me if you liked or hated this chapter. See you soon!


	8. Kinetic

This took a while, I just couldn't squeeze the fluffiness out so I went to my dear friend for some slight help. To JoYi, you're awesome! I don't think I can start the story if you haven't given me the first three paragraph! I owe you one but if you demand more, I'll kick your ass. And I don't care if you're a black belt and I'm a blue, I still have moves! *huffs*

Anyways, thanks to her, this chapter will be filled with angst and fluff and just..oh you know what, just read it. I was bombarded with reviews and alerts from chapter 7, you guys sure know how to make me happy *laughs* I guess we all want to see what happens to Saruhiko, hm? Well, don't let me keep you from reading, enjoy!

* * *

There were some things in life that you would never be prepared for. He can't believe it- couldn't believe it. He won't believe it. It was impossible. He bit his lip, eyes screwed shut for a long moment, but the gory image would not leave his mind, and the weight in his arms is far too real. He couldn't get the image of a dying Fushimi, bleeding heavily from the wound in his chest, out of his mind. He didn't want to believe it, but a part of him had stopped denying it. Losing himself, he cried out;

"Saruhiko, please wake up! Don't leave me- not again!" He pulled Fushimi's limp body closer to his own being. He didn't care if his shirt would be stained such a painful shade of red, and he couldn't be bothered about the overpowering metallic odour that was clouding his mind- he simply wanted those blue eyes to open and look at him.

Fushimi have always looked at him, and taking care of him as subtly as he could. Back in junior high, out in the streets, through high school, and even in Homra before he left for Scepter 4. Those mesmerizing blue eyes have always watched him with passion, possessiveness, gentleness, care and above all, love. And Yata had been blind to all of it until now.

"Please Saru..." he sobs out and pressing their foreheads together as tears continues to stream down his face. "I want you by my side; I don't want to loose you anymore,"

The people surrounding them can only watch with a tight feeling in their chests, and a few women have already cried from the heartbreaking scene. A couple of girls then enter the bank and walk towards the crying boy. Some of the people tried to stop them but two pair of yellow-green eyes glare at them, challenging them to stop their march forward.

A hand gently pats Yata on the shoulder and he looks up only to meet Ayame and Yua. Glaring up at the two, he pulls Fushimi closer to him. "What do you two want? Come here to gloat about something?" he hisses venomously. Yua seems somewhat shaken by his angry looks but Ayame simply stares at him emotionlessly, though her eyes are glowing somewhat.

She then turns to Yua before whispering something to her. The straight-haired girl nods and with a snap of her fingers, the strings disappear, but the pink cuffs remain on their respective wrists. "Seeing how he needs a surgery to close that horrible wound and possibly a blood transfusion, we can't have you loitering around the ER for no apparent reason," Yua says as she points at the cuffs. "So I made the string disappear, though you two will still feel a pull towards each other, you especially."

Ayame regards Yata coldly before her eyes soften and a small smile graces her lips. "You two have done well, but it's not done yet. Until the cuffs are pure white, we can't do anything about it. Take care of him," she said before the two runs off outside and disappearing into the crowd.

Yata couldn't believe what he just heard and seen. To think, he and Fushimi had been trying to trail the girls for a few days only for them to be trailed instead. But right now he doesn't care about those two, only focusing on Fushimi's pale body as the blood continue to gush out of the wound in his chest. Looking down, Yata could see the cuffs are bright pink with a slight white hue to it. Whatever the cuffs are doing, he doesn't care.

Pulling Fushimi even closer, if that was even possible, Yata cradles him gently and even humming a soft tune. He didn't know if Fushimi's able to hear or not, but if Fushimi is to die now, then he'd die listening to his favorite song coming out of Yata's voice.

Not a moment later, the ambulance arrives and lays Fushimi on the stretcher. Since Yata knows Fushimi, the doctors allow him to come along and all of them went into the ambulance. The vanguard doesn't know what the doctors are doing, he only watches in silence as Fushimi is hooked into lines and tubes, his mouth covered with an oxygen mask. Tentatively, Yata plucks Fushimi's glasses from his face and cradles it close to his chest.

The trip to the hospital is a silent one with the only noise being Fushimi's heart monitor beeping in a rhythm, showing that the blue clansman is still alive and breathing, albeit weakly. The doctors question Yata about what happened and why Fushimi got shot to which the skateboarder answers a little shakily. He still couldn't believe what just happened.

"He'll be alright, won't he? Won't he?" he asks with a choked sob as one of the doctors gave him a friendly pat on the shoulder. Tears continue to stream down his face and he circles his hand around Fushimi's, squeezing it lightly hoping to have some sort of reaction from the taller boy, only to receive none.

Upon arriving at the hospital, Fushimi is quickly brought in towards the emergency room to undergo surgery. Yata only watches from the door solemnly, his hands still clutching Fushimi's glasses close to his chest. He then slowly made his way to the waiting room and promptly plops himself down, not caring that people are staring at him.

He simply sat there for God knows how long, staring at the floor and fiddling with the thick-rimmed glasses when a pair of white shoes came into his view. Looking up, he could see some members of Homra and Scepter 4 in the same room as he is, looking at him with concerned eyes.

"Yata-chan," Izumo calls out softly. The vanguard's eyes are glazed and void, showing that he had been crying for a while now. "Maybe you should go home and rest for a bit, maybe change some clothes. Visiting hours is still on, you can come back later after you've freshened up," the bartender deals and places a comforting hand on the teenager's shoulder.

"We'll keep you informed about Fushimi's status," Awashima continues just as softly. She could see that whatever the Strains have been doing, it had helped the two settle their differences and strengthen their friendship. If the two are to come into custody, she'd like to thank them first. "Go home, Yatagarasu,"

At first Yata is reluctant, but seeing the Blue King and his Vice-Captain, Izumo, Kamamoto and even Anna made him feel relieved somewhat. If the Tundra Woman says she'll keep him updated, then maybe he could feel at ease for a bit. "Yeah, I'll be going to Saruhiko's to change clothes," he says quietly before heading out of the hospital.

Those who are still in the waiting room only watch him forlornly as he retrieves his board and went off towards Fushimi's apartment.

The evening breeze swept past Yata, making him feel somewhat better and his head a little lighter. He trusts the doctors to take care of Fushimi, and he has the feeling that Fushimi doesn't want to see him all bloodied up when he wakes up, even if those aren't his blood to begin with.

_You look like crap; don't you know anything about showering?_ Would be most likely what he'd say once he awakens. Yata doesn't realize that he's been smiling when he thinks about that, and the thought alone fuels his need to see Fushimi better again. Speeding up, he soon arrives at the apartment and quickly heads inside.

The onslaught of Fushimi's smell in the bedroom somehow made Yata stop in his tracks. The vanguard reminisces the nights they shared together over the past few days and how in the night he'd sometimes wake up from lack of oxygen, only to realize it was Fushimi holding him so tightly and so close to his chest.

Picking up a pillow, Yata breathes in deeply, taking in the strong masculine scent of his friend. Fushimi always have this smell on him that's not on anyone else, not even Mikoto. Sure, the King smells like tobacco and a mix of alcohol, and something else entirely that screams of power. But Fushimi's scent is a little gentler but still shows that it's his scent and not anyone else's.

Unconsciously, Yata had wet the pillow with his tears and pulls back before he could do anymore damage to it. Drying his face with the back of his hand, the vanguard enters the bathroom to freshen himself before pulling a clean shirt and a pair of pants from his bag. He'd have enough time to grab something to eat in the kitchen before heading back out towards the hospital.

The scene in the waiting room is as normal as before, but Reishi had left along with Kamamoto and Anna leaving only Izumo and Awashima there. From such a distance, Yata could see the two sitting rather close together and Izumo having his princely face on while Awashima looks torn between entertaining him or keeping her cold exterior on.

_I knew there's something going on between those two_, he thought before looking down at the cuff on his right wrist. He wonders if the girls would do him a favor and get those two stuck for a change, that way Izumo would know that this isn't all that fun and games.

"Ah, Yata-chan, what are you doing standing so far? There are plenty more seats here," the bartender calls out. Yata can clearly see the cold exterior of the woman back in place as he nears the two adults.

"Is Saruhiko alright?" was his first question. Both adults seem somewhat surprised at the genuine concern the crow is expressing, but they both know that he wears his heart on his sleeve, and that their relationship isn't so strained anymore. "Is he out of surgery yet?" he continues to press on.

"Calm down, Yatagarasu. The doctor isn't out yet so we're not sure the current condition Fushimi is in," Awashima answers coolly. Yata hung his head slightly and takes a seat next to Izumo. The three sat in silence when Awashima's PDA rang signaling that her King needs her for another mission. She bids farewell to the two boys and heads off towards the waiting vehicle.

Once she's out of sight, Izumo glances at the teen sitting next to him warily. Though the vanguard had taken a shower and perhaps something to eat, he still looks distraught and pale, as if he's just there but his mind is off somewhere far. Well, Izumo could understand that, Yata's always the one who shows his emotions the most, especially with someone he holds dear.

Slowly, those amber eyes look up to stare at him. "Kusanagi-san, you can leave me here, it's alright," the vanguard says shakily. Izumo regards him for a while and shaking his head.

"Sorry Yata-chan, but I can't just leave you here when your mind's out of sorts. Until the doctor gives the green for Saruhiko, I'll be staying here. The bar should be fine, I closed it," Izumo answers back with a wavering smile. True, he didn't want to leave Yata here when his emotional state is in turbulence, but he also wants to know what happens to Fushimi so he could report back to Awashima later on.

Yata was about to retort back when a doctor bursts out of the door and turns to the waiting boys. "Are you acquaintances to Fushimi Saruhiko?" he asks. Yata realizes that he must be the doctor who operates Fushimi and quickly stands up.

"Yeah, is Saruhiko alright?" he asks the doctor frantically. The doctor sighs lightly and regards the vanguard with a serious gaze.

"Fushimi-kun is in critical state. His lung is punctured due to the bullet and misses his heart by only a few millimeters, we've managed to remove fragments of the bullet and close the wound but his heart is weak. It almost stopped twice but we managed to get that under control too, the problem is now we don't have enough blood supply for the transfusion. If this goes on, he won't make it," the doctor says as he shakes his head.

Yata feels as if the whole world just crashed on his back after hearing that news. _Saruhiko...won't make it?_ He thought shakily. Izumo quickly got up to his feet to catch Yata as he falls to his knees, the vanguard's breathing hitches and frantic. Both the bartender and doctor can only watch forlornly as the vanguard cries silently. But soon his sobbing stop and he looks at the doctor straight in the eyes.

"Take everything you want from me," Yata says pointedly as he rise to his feet. Izumo and the doctor seem surprised by his decision and even try to make him rethink his choice since a lot of blood is needed for the transfusion. But the skateboarder is adamant to donate some of his blood to his friend. "You said so yourself, if he doesn't get enough blood, he won't make it!"

With a sigh, the doctor agrees and brings the skateboarder into the donation room. Izumo only watches him with an exasperated look, sometimes he just can't win against the teenager.

Moments later and after getting his blood drained to the point where he feels like fainting, Yata returns to the waiting room where Izumo is more than glad to help him to his feet. He could see the skateboarder's face paler than usual and his eyes lost its gleam. They stayed there even after visiting hours and the moon high in sky, waiting for any news about the blue clansman.

As he waits in silence, Yata starts to remember the times they used to share together before Homra. Fushimi was warmer back then whenever they have to protect each other from the cold, and he was smiling a lot more too. _Where had it all gone wrong, Saruhiko?_ Yata thought solemnly.

Minutes gone by replaced by hours and still there isn't any news about Fushimi which just makes Yata all the twitchier. His eyes move frantically from the floor, to the door and back to the floor again as he twiddles his thumbs. Izumo only watches him in silence knowing this isn't his place to offer comfort.

He sighs and stretches his arms above his head when he notices the gentle rays of the sunlight filtering in through the windows. _Dawn already?_ He thought tiredly. The two had stayed up the entire night and with Yata not having enough blood in him, Izumo's worried the boy would collapse all of a sudden.

All of a sudden, the doors open and the doctor comes out causing two sets of eyes to look up at him. They note that the doctor looks tired, but he has a soft and reassuring smile on his face causing Yata to hold his breath in anticipation.

"He's stabilized thanks to the blood you gave him," the doctor says causing Yata to release his breath and slumps in his seat with a tired but happy smile. However, the doctor's smile soon turns into a light frown and the two males wonder if something else is the matter. "Unfortunately, Fushimi-kun is now in a coma due to the injuries and his heart stopping twice. We don't know when he'll wake up, that's as far as we can get,"

The hope that was in his chest now crumbled to pieces upon hearing that, and Yata buries his face in his hands. Izumo can only place a comforting hand on his back and he turns to the doctor. "Are we allowed to visit him?" he asks the doctor who nods his head. Tentatively, Izumo snaps Yata out of his shock and pulls him to his feet before following the doctor to Fushimi's room.

Seeing white all around, it just doesn't suit Fushimi in the least. The vanguard slowly made his way to the chair and sat down, staring into Fushimi's face and waiting for a reaction. Izumo followed suit as the doctor leaves them for privacy and stands beside the comatose blue clansman.

He eyes the vanguard when he pulls Fushimi's limp hand into his and squeezing it lightly. That action itself speaks a thousand words and Izumo looks down at Fushimi's face so he wouldn't have to see the small but meaningful action. "You can talk to him you know, he can still hear you," Izumo said after a long while.

Yata snaps his head up to look at the bartender in surprise before lowering his gaze back at Fushimi's face. Izumo could see behind those lively amber eyes hold such gentleness for the slumbering figure, a gentleness he had grown to miss seeing. Yata's normally brash and loud, but he only sees that kind of look when it comes to Fushimi. After the boy's betrayal, Yata's eyes have hardened and that sort of gentleness was hidden.

Until today.

After a while, Izumo thought it's best if he leaves to open his bar, Yata was more than happy to stay by Fushimi's side but the bartender warns him to go home and get some rest as soon as possible or else he'd drag the vanguard away if he has to. Yata heeds the warning and nods his head before Izumo left the room.

Gripping the hand tighter, he brought it to his tear-streamed face and chokes back; "Saruhiko..."

* * *

*twitches* I think I gave myself cooties with this.. Can you feel the fluff? If not..well..I'll have to work harder in the next chapter, but if you do, I have reached my goal! Hmm..should I make an alternate ending to this story? Because I have multiple ideas on what to do to Fushimi, and the first one will probably make you guys squeel and scream and probably begging for more.

The others..well, multiple reactions is most likely I'll get from you *laughs* But I'll go with the first one for starters, and if I have enough encouragement, I'll probably put up some alternate endings just for you guys. So, leave me a review and say what's on your mind *smile*


	9. Kingpin

Sorry this took so long, my week was swamped with things. I have classes from morning to evening, visiting my choir juniors at school and tutoring them, and also visiting my grandma who's..I don't think is going to last.. *sigh* So you can see why I'm somewhat upset.

I'm fine though, I'll be fine eventually. So I'm sorry again if the update took some time, I hope you enjoy..

* * *

Days slowly went by but with no signs that Fushimi would wake up. That serene face continues to stay lax and Yata somehow misses seeing those blue eyes staring at him and though he don't want to admit it, misses the way Fushimi would tease him in that somewhat creepy tone and making his blood boil. Now he realizes that those little quirks are actually what made Fushimi as himself.

Fushimi used to be someone he knew would always be by his side; there was a time like that actually. Where it would just be the two of them against the world and doing whatever they please whenever they please. And the Homra came along, and they got a family, but he supposed somewhere along the line, Fushimi wasn't happy.

He recalls the time when Fushimi was still in Homra, and that they had gone to the amusement park when they first met Anna. Totsuka had asked him a strange question then and it made him wonder.

"_I wonder if Saru-kun, who felt the same way as you, is also letting himself be saved by us."_

It was a question he'd never even thought of. It wasn't something he had thought of, but he tried thinking about it, and came up with a simple answer;

"_I don't know, but isn't he?"_

Yata's always thought that Homra had saved him from the cruelty of the world and that nothing matters more than Homra and the people who saved him. Was it bad that they got a family they can depend on? Why is it that Fushimi wasn't happy?

Grabbing the blue clansman's hand, Yata holds it close to his chest. He could feel the cuffs vibrating gently, as if massaging him and 'telling' him that things will work out for the better. His tears wanted to spill, but there's nothing more to spill for. Fushimi's comatose for almost two weeks, and there's nothing more the vanguard could do.

"Come on Saruhiko..." he calls out to the sleeping teen quietly. "I know you can hear me, so open your eyes. I want you to look at me again,"

But as usual, Fushimi doesn't even twitch and Yata continues to sit there from morning to night. The nurses and doctors are already acquainted with the vanguard and his friend's condition, so they hardly say anything when he'd visit everyday. Even Izumo, Anna or even Kamamoto could hardly talk him into resting anymore.

Anna had even tried to use her marbles to 'see' if Fushimi is alright or not, but the blue clansman's in such a deep slumber that even her ability couldn't pierce in. All she got was a white wall and a sharp throb to her head. Yata had thanked her for trying since she looked somewhat distraught and upset for not being much of a help, but that's all there is to it.

Ever since the accident, Yata only returns home to freshen up and change clothes, grabbing food from any random nearby store and head over to the hospital. Sleeping is hardly necessary to him anymore, the warmth in the bed had gone cold long ago and the apartment just reminded him too much of Fushimi for him to be able to sleep properly.

Resting the hand back against the sleeping body, Yata inches closer to Fushimi as best as he could from his perch on the chair. He then leans forward so he can rest the upper half of his body next to his friend and taking in his scent. The hospital rooms have altered Fushimi's natural smell, and Yata hates it to the core.

This new and sterile-like smell just doesn't fit Fushimi at all. To see him so quiet and lax isn't something Yata likes. Sure, Fushimi was a quiet and doesn't like to go around much back in their younger days but he still has that spark that makes him as who he is, and that spark lit the ones in Yata's soul.

_I don't care anymore, I just want him to wake up and let me back into his life_, he thought ruefully. But his mind then questions him back; or is it perhaps the other way around? Was Fushimi the one who betrayed him first, or he betrayed Fushimi? That question was never answered, and he had never thought about it until now.

Closing his eyes, Yata slowly reminisces the time he had shared with Fushimi before the betrayal, their hands brushing lightly against each other and the vanguard twitches slightly, wanting to hold it.

Back then, one won't be seen without the other. They practically go everywhere together and no one else could get near them. Yata was never good at making friends, what with his temper and vulgarity, and Fushimi's quiet and disinterested nature made him think that having friends are like having shackles tying you down. They both had ended up being frustrated over nothing, and that's when they had met and stuck together.

Personality-wise, they're as opposite as heaven and earth but they somehow managed to deal with that and become close. Yata would often bring Fushimi to the arcade and even begged him if the taller boy doesn't look interested. But Fushimi had never denied his requests, even if he doesn't want to go. He'd even go as far as get a new game and saving Yata from a group of bullies once before they both ended up at the vanguard's house, playing to their hearts content.

The laughs they shared, the pain, the tears, the anger, everything, and all only with each other. Without even knowing, a small smile graces the vanguard's lips as he finally reaches for his friend's hand again and brushing the knuckles with his thumb gently.

"Saruhiko, remember that time when we had to rescue Anna and you were upset because of what you said about her parents? That time when we met at the park? You were always so distant, but you always let me in," the vanguard mumbles out as he slowly opens his eyes to look at Fushimi. He then brushes a strand of hair away from that face before folding his arm again.

_That's because you're an idiot, and I'm wary about that, even if I let you in_, would be most likely what Fushimi would've replied, earning a light-hearted but hollow chuckle from the vanguard. He did nothing more after that and later that evening when visiting hours are over, he returns to Fushimi's apartment to get at least some bit of sleep.

While Yata is slowly making his way back to the apartment, he didn't realize that he's being tailed by both Yua and Ayame who's watching him with distant looks. The cuffs are glowing bright white, but it is yet to disperse completely and the girls are somewhat confused by this.

"Yua, shouldn't that thing disappear by now? I've never seen it so pure white before," Ayame says while leaning against the alley wall, her eyes continue to stare at the vanguard's back even as the sky starts to darken and people making their way back home. Yua stays quiet, and Ayame realizes that she's in tune to the cuffs to see what's going on.

With a sigh, the girl shakes her head. "The cuffs may be at its strongest, but the element of communication is lacking from them so it can't disperse just yet. If it does, that boy might get tired of his friend because the constant pull will no longer be there. Until the Scepter 4 agent wakes up, the cuffs aren't going anywhere,"

"I wish they'd just confess already, obviously there's something between the two that they're too much of an idiot to notice. I'm pretty sure Yatagarasu's friends can actually see their relationship, but given that he's the captain of their shock troop, his comrades didn't say anything," Ayame snorts out with disdain.

Yua only smiles at that, Ayame is always one to speak her mind as she sees the bonds between people, so she has no problem seeing the truth. Perhaps she's right, perhaps she's just too imaginative, but Yua has to agree that the boys have a lot more than what they see on the surface. Especially the taller of the boys, she can sense a deep attachment to Yatagarasu, an attachment he's valiantly trying to protect.

Upon entering the apartment, Yata stumbles into the bedroom, his skateboard tossed to the side of the bed and ignored. He hardly uses it nowadays anyway; Izumo didn't even call him for any assignments, possibly wanting to give him the time he needs for himself, and for that the vanguard is thankful. He doesn't need to see anyone right now, his chest hurts too much.

As usual, the bedroom is still strongly scented with Fushimi's scent, but Yata realizes that it's slowly disappearing, replacing with his own and it irks him. With an attitude identical to his friend for the moment, the vanguard clicks his tongue and heads over to the cupboard where he pulls open the doors, revealing Fushimi's clean and ironed Scepter 4 coats. Pulling one out, he dons it on himself.

Of course, the jacket is too big on him and Fushimi's teasing of him being 11cm shorter rang through his head and the vanguard grits his teeth with a crooked smile. Even if he misses the teasing, he's still rather sensitive about his height and had been on milk ever since the accident. Not only does he think he can still go on a growth spurt, he had overheard from a couple of girls that milk makes someone stay full a little longer despite not eating anything. And when he tried it, it was true. He had once gone only with breakfast the whole day without collapsing.

Putting the thought aside, Yata rolls the sleeves up and pins the neckline together with a pin he had found in the bedroom before looking at himself in the mirror. A blue Scepter 4 jacket with his white shirt underneath and his usual green shorts, what a funny combination. Yata couldn't help but smile sadly before collapsing on the bed. He had thought about showering, but he just wants a short rest for the moment, just to remember back the warmth he felt when they slept together.

_Saruhiko, what am I to you? _The vanguard thought tiredly as he breathes in deeply. He had thought of asking that question to his friend, but the words that came out were always Homra. Back when they had been stuck in the mole's cellar, he had asked Fushimi for his betrayal, but the blue clansman simply answers half-heartedly and with scorn without even an ounce of answer he had been looking for.

All this time, Yata have always thought of Fushimi as his comrade and partner, but Fushimi always has a disgusted look on his face after he said that, as if he doesn't like to be called 'partner' or even 'comrade'. Yata doesn't know what Fushimi wants to be called, so until Fushimi tells him himself, he'd stick to calling him partner or comrade no matter how many times the other looks disgusted.

A little voice at the back of the vanguard's head then asks him back; _what is Saruhiko to me? _That question made his interest perk. A comrade perhaps? Or a partner? Sure, they fought together once and were close, but was it really a 'partner'? Perhaps something more that he doesn't know the answer to.

Just thinking about it hurts his head and he growls angrily. He doesn't know, but he wants to know and yet the answer isn't even in his grasp. Normally Fushimi would do the thinking, being the brain of them while he's the muscle, but Fushimi's in a state of sleep and couldn't even hold him, that just makes it worse.

Was Fushimi important to him? Of course he was, and he still is. Turning to his back, Yata stares at the ceiling, hoping to find at least some answer as he continues to ponder. For that moment, his mind reels back and it's as if he's re-living his old middle school time with Fushimi. Since they had no one but each other, they count each other as family and Fushimi even calls him by his first name multiple times without being scolded.

Was there something more? Something he had overlooked completely? Somewhere at the back of his mind, he recalls how possessive Fushimi sounded when he had said he wanted to go off somewhere with some friends from school. They would fight and Yata would relent, and he realizes that when he does, a small smile would grace Fushimi's lips though it would be wiped out almost instantly.

And he also realizes that on the bus while going to school, he could feel Fushimi's head lightly resting on his while they listen to some songs on the earphone. He didn't mind then, probably Fushimi's tired and needed a short nap. Sometimes he too would rest his head on Fushimi's shoulder and the bus would be quieter than usual, though he doesn't know why that happened. More often than not, he'd also take a bite out of Fushimi's crepe and they both would end up bickering playfully with each other and laughing.

Slowly but surely, the vanguard realizes how many times they have slept on each other's laps, sharing food or even sleeping on each other's shoulders. His cheeks slowly turning into a rosy pink colour when he also recalled the times fujoshis would be smiling, giggling or pointing at him and Fushimi back in their younger days. Now he knows why.

"This can't be happening! No way! This is a joke!" he cries out as realization hits him in the face. The blush on his cheeks now a bright red when he also remembers that Scorpios –Fushimi being the prime example- are highly possessive over someone or something they hold dear and would want to keep them for themselves forever.

Sitting up and groaning in embarrassment, he starts to think whether Fushimi's someone he holds dear or not. Going through the pros and cons, he realizes that Fushimi is a wonderful friend minus his creepy behavior. No wonder the blue clansman knows so much about him without him ever saying anything, Fushimi was, and still interested in him beyond comparison. He'd go great lengths to know what the vanguard likes, dislikes and other little trivia.

"You creepy motherfucker, I should punch you the moment you wake up..." he grumbles alone and looking at the wardrobe angrily as if imagining Fushimi in his Scepter 4 glory standing in front of the furniture. Huffing, the vanguard takes off his clothes and went over to the bathroom for some ice cold shower. He needs to get that creepy thought out of his head before he gets anymore flustered.

When he's done and ready for bed, sleeping is another troubling thing as the bed feels too big and too cold without the extra body lying next to him giving off warmth. The thought again made him blush tomato red and turning his body away from facing Fushimi's side. Ever since he came to the conclusion that Fushimi is only interested in him, he just couldn't see the taller teen as the same anymore.

As he slowly drifts off to sleep, he came to a conclusion that Fushimi also plays an important role in his life, and he shouldn't stop looking at him just because there are other interesting things showing up. _Maybe I should just talk to him like in the old days when he wakes up, that might be good for the both of us_, he thought before sleep completely overtook his senses.

The next day, he went to the hospital as usual after getting a decent sleep for the first time. He had made some toast and drank his coffee and is now heading off towards the hospital on his board. The two Strain girls deftly and stealthily follow him as quickly as they can. Yua has a sharp feeling that the cuffs are sending some sort of signal to her.

And by lord she loves that signal.

As the vanguard reaches the hospital, the girls quickly leapt up the railings until they reach the window of the room Fushimi is in. Shortly after, Yata comes in and takes his usual seat beside the sleeping clansman, watching and talking to him about his day as usual. Outside the window, Yua focuses her powers on the cuffs binding the two together and smiles before the two leaps back down to the ground.

Yata remains oblivious to the girls and continue to talk about what he had seen and what he had been doing the past few days. Gripping the blue clansman's hand tightly, the vanguard pushes himself up and leans his face close to Fushimi's, blushing as red as a tomato all the while.

He wanted to say he misses the idiot, but his voice somehow doesn't work and he simply leans their foreheads together. A small twitch from his hand made the vanguard quickly look at their interlaced fingers. He waited for a few short moments, but when the twitch doesn't repeat, he felt his hope deflate.

Sinking back into his seat, he continues to hold on to Fushimi's hand in case there's another small twitch. And much to the vanguard's surprise, his hand is squeezed back lightly and for the first time, Fushimi clenches his eyelids tighter and groaning softly. The vanguard leaps up and starts to encourage his friend to open his eyes.

"Saruhiko? Hey, wake up! It's me!" Yata continues to call out. Fushimi slowly opens his eyes and stares at the vanguard before him. Not a few moments later, doctors and nurses pile in to take the blue clansman's readings as Yata moves back to give them some room. He could see the somewhat scared look from those blue eyes, so he reassures Fushimi with a gentle smile.

After a short while, the doctors turn to him with a smile. "He's completely stabilized. Fushimi-kun won't be awake all the time for the time being, but his consciousness will gradually grow longer and he'll be as normal as before,"

Hearing that, Yata can finally smile without anymore weight on his chest. He thanked the doctors and nurses just as they leave before returning back to his friend's bed. Fushimi looks tired and ready to go back to sleep at any given time, but he uses the last of his energy to stay awake and grace a small smile to the vanguard.

He was about to say something when a blinding white light engulfs both their visions. The cuffs glow brightly and the boys heard a small noise from the door. Turning to the source, they notice Yua and Ayame standing there, hand in hand and smiling at them. The girls nod slightly at the boys before the glow becomes too blinding and the boys have to cover their eyes.

When they come to, both the girls and the cuffs are completely gone and they no longer feel a constant pull to each other. At first Fushimi is completely flabbergasted, as does Yata, but he recovers from his shock to grasp the vanguard's wrist weakly.

The skateboarder looks down in slight shock but his posture relaxes completely and smiles when he realizes that all is done. Gripping Fushimi's hand in his own and happy tears slowly dripping from his eyes, he whispers; "Welcome back,"

* * *

Oh the fluff~! I tried making this as angsty as possible, but my mind is completely to my grandma who's at her home in the north right now and my mum and everyone else from her side visiting my grandma. I can't really go visit though since I don't have time. I really hope she passes on smoothly..

Anyways, the next chapter is most likely the last, but since quite a handful of you guys want some alternate endings, I shall go on with that! I won't do a lot though, maybe just two or three so the story won't have hundreds of endings and look so..dull. The next update will be up soon, because my body's immune system is breaking down again...and I'm falling sick again..

Physically, my body is strong, but when it comes to my immune system..I'm actually very weak. Meh..*shrugs* Do leave me some reviews and tell me what you think of this chapter!


	10. Kiss

Jeez..was the previous chapter that bad? But whatever, I'm working hard for this chapter and I hope you guys enjoyed it. My grandma's fine apparently, I told my mum that she won't just roll over and die, she's too tough for that. Anyways, this chapter will be filled with slight fluff and lovey-dovey mushy goodness *laughs* That's to be expected, right? And now that Fushimi is out of the hospital, we can see how they reconcile!

These two idiots -yes, I see them as idiots...- finally realize their feelings and telling it to the other. I really wish this happens in the anime, it'd make my day. To see Fushimi and Yata so loving with each other..ah, bliss. The whole reason I'm so into the mushy feeling is because I read the translations for _K Side: Red_, I love the fluff in there! It makes me feel so warm inside.. Ahh..I shouldn't ramble, since this is the last chapter, I shall leave you to reading! Enjoy...

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After a few more days in the hospital, Fushimi is finally allowed to be discharged with the bill covered by Scepter 4. Reisi was glad to hear that all had gone well for his subordinate and the friendship he shares with the former Red Clan's vanguard. The Strains that were responsible for the mending of their broken bond had appeared in front of the Blue King the day before Fushimi is released with a large smile on their faces and the words 'you're welcome' directed at him before they both disappeared.

At first Reisi contemplated whether he should find the girls and send them to the Gold King's institute, but they never create trouble, and their cause is that they only want to help people as best as they could since bonds can never break once they're formed. With a small smile of his own, he lets the girls go and returned to his office.

As for Yata and Fushimi, they're both in the cab and heading towards Fushimi's apartment with the latter resting his head lightly on the skateboarder's shoulder. Yata blushes slightly but he didn't brush the other off, and leans in closer instead earning a contented hum from Fushimi. The driver of the cab couldn't focus on the road since his passengers are being so sweet with each other at the back seats.

"You need a shower once we got home," Yata says as he lightly nudges the other boy's shoulder. Fushimi keeps his eyes close and wraps his arms around Yata's waist, causing the shorter male to tense and squeak slightly.

"I want Misaki to take a shower with me, to keep me up," the blue clansman reply nonchalantly and buries his face on Yata's shoulder, his grip on the other boy's waist tightens when Yata starts to squirm slightly. "Wash my hair for me and dry me when I'm done," he continues with a small smirk, knowing full well that his dearest is blushing like mad.

Yata can only sputter indignantly and pinches Fushimi on his back rather hard, but not hard enough to cause too much pain or break the skin. "Stop saying such ridiculous things, idiot! You have a tub don't you? Use that and dry your own damn self, I'm not going to do everything for you," he answers defiantly and turning his head away from Fushimi.

Knowing that the vanguard is completely flustered and not looking at him, Fushimi lifts his head from the shorter male's shoulder and with a hand, he holds Yata's chin gently to turn his face to look at him, causing ember eyes to meet electric blue. "Then, make me some dinner? You know what I like and what I don't like, and your food is always one of a kind," Fushimi says with a gentle smile causing the vanguard's face to turn redder.

Sputtering slightly again, Yata is at loss for words. On one hand, he wants to make dinner for Fushimi as he had told himself that they should return to being friends like in the old days. But on the other hand, he wants to push Fushimi away for saying such silly things and looking as if he's flirting with him. The clashing thoughts and emotions made him unable to speak which spurs Fushimi all the more.

Now, both hands are on the vanguard's red cheeks and Fushimi stares into those mesmerizing, lively and beautiful ember orbs. "What's the matter, Misaki? Cat got your tongue all of a sudden?" Fushimi asks as he continues to stroke and pat the other's cheeks. "You seem to have lost some weight; you should really watch over yourself more,"

Finally getting his brain to work, Yata tries to push the other boy away. "What are you saying all of a sudden? Did something happen while you were in coma? You don't even sound like you, this is creepy!" he cries out and moving away from Fushimi. However, the blue clansman would have none of that and pulls the other boy in an embrace. Yata is too stunned to do anything and slowly raises his hands to grasp the back of the other's shirt.

"I heard what you told me while I was out. I wanted to tell you off and asked you to shut up, but I can't so I had to listen to your stories. I realized how I've missed listening to you and only you, when it was only us. No Scepter 4, no Homra, no Kings, just us. And then I heard how you sometimes cried and begging me to wake up... Trust me Misaki; I tried to wake up ever since you cried out for me, I tried until I could," Fushimi says with a small smile and slowly rubbing circles on the other's back.

The two stayed like that for a few more short minutes before Yata's mind finally caught up to what he's doing and pushing Fushimi away slightly, blushing from head to toe all the while. The taller of the two simply smiles warmly and wrapping an arm around the shorter boy as the cab continues its way to the blue clansman's apartment.

Once they've arrived, Yata quickly grabs hold of Fushimi so that he'd lean against the vanguard and they slowly make their way to the elevator. There are a few people inside who watches the two curiously, but never really opening their mouths until the boys reach their floor and going out of the cramped space.

"You sure you can bathe properly? You're still weak though," Yata says tentatively as he lays Fushimi on the bed. The taller teen simply clicks his tongue and shoots a look of annoyance to the vanguard who then returns the look twice over. "Don't give me that look, damn monkey! I was just worried about you! Wouldn't want you to die all of a sudden,"

Fushimi raises a brow at the sudden very subtle clipped tone from the vanguard. He realizes that the vanguard practically has no one else to consider as family, and he's the only one who knows him the longest. Smiling somewhat, he pulls Yata's hand and yanks the vanguard on top of him, their faces only inches apart from each other causing Yata to blush profusely. "What the hell do you think you're doing? I'm crushing you!"

A contented hum sounds from Fushimi's lips and he brought the other boy next to him. Yata just lets Fushimi do as he pleases since this is practically the first time he'd seen the other boy so happy after all these years. They stayed like that for a few short moments before the skateboarder pushes himself up to a sitting position and glares at Fushimi.

"I told you that you needed a shower, and I now don't care if you're too weak to do it for yourself because I'm going to make something for the both of us to eat. If you can cuddle me, then you can shower no problem," he said with a leer and getting off the bed. Fushimi blinks his eyes surprisingly at the shorter boy who now makes his way out of the bedroom and towards the kitchen. A smile graces his lips teasingly as he stares at the retreating back.

"So you count that as a cuddle? Funny, because I see it more of a hug," Fushimi replies back in his usual bored monotonous voice, but the smile on his face clearly shows how much fun he's having teasing the other boy.

Yata's ears perk up and quickly become red as Fushimi said that. "Shut up you monkey! There is no way a hug is like that! Whatever, just go clean up and help me in the kitchen later, I want you to eat vegetables for once," the vanguard grumbles out before running out of the room. Fushimi pouts slightly at the thought of having to eat what he loathes most, but seeing how it's Misaki's cooking, he'd give it a shot.

Rolling out of the bed, Fushimi strips down to his birthday suit and steps into the shower case. His thoughts revolve around how his best friend returns to him and living under the same roof as he is. Never before had he thought that this dream might even come true, but now that it did, he's going to make sure that the vanguard doesn't leave his side again.

Meanwhile, Yata is cooking away in the kitchen and thinking about the embrace they had not a few minutes ago. After having to endure weeks of silence and coldness of the apartment, Fushimi finally returns to restore it to its normal, warm atmosphere. The embrace itself spoke of a thousand words and it makes the vanguard feels all cozy on the inside.

_What is wrong with me?_ He thought with a rose-coloured blush on his cheeks, it's a miracle that the food he's cooking isn't burnt with how much he's thinking right now. Shaking his head and ridding the thoughts, he pays his attention back to the fish he's grilling. But the thoughts still linger in his head, and an inappropriate image of him in an apron pops up.

"Saruhiko, I'm going to kill you!" he cries as his face starts to turn a dark red. The blue clansman who heard the cry simply clicks his tongue in annoyance. Either Yata had found something that wasn't supposed to be found, or he thought up of something that just made himself embarrassed. Somehow, Fushimi thought, it's most likely the latter since there's nothing inappropriate is in the apartment.

When he's done showering and wearing only a simple pair of pants and shirt, he quietly make his way to the kitchen where Yata is getting the rice and wraps his arms around the shorter boy's midriff, rubbing his face against the neck at the same time. "Misaki, I'm hungry," he says, though it sounds more like a whine.

Surprised out of his wits, Yata starts to struggle only to have Fushimi wrap his arms tighter and stopping him from going anywhere. "Let go of me, stupid monkey! If you really are that hungry, sit down quietly and let me get your food for you!" the skateboarder shouts vehemently and trying to push Fushimi away with his free hand.

Yata could've sworn he heard the taller boy chuckle and even nipping his neck slightly, causing him to struggle harder and spew every curse word he knows. "But I'm hungry for Misaki, Misaki is all that I ever need and want. The food can wait, let's just enjoy ourselves," Fushimi said darkly, earning an estranged 'meep' from the vanguard.

Huffing indignantly, Yata puts down the rice bowl on the counter and with his other hand, he snakes it to Fushimi's back and pinches the skin there roughly causing Fushimi to let go and jumps back instantly. The boys glower at each other but Fushimi then smiles and start to move at Yata again, albeit more like a prey seeking its predator.

Seeing the look on his friend's face, Yata quickly grabs a frying pan to defend himself. "I swear, if you move one more step, I'm going to bash this frying pan so hard against your face, you'd be eating your own teeth for dinner!" he hisses menacingly. Fushimi pauses mid-step and seems to consider the threat, much to Yata's delight.

"I don't care, it's been a while since Misaki hugged me," he answers back with a nonchalant shrug. Before the skateboarder could do anything else, Fushimi had already pounced him and tackled him to the ground, nuzzling his neck and shoulder blades all the way. Yata could do nothing except shout profanities at the other boy and demanding him to let go so that the food won't get cold.

After struggling to get free and even bashing Fushimi on the arm with the pan, they finally settled down and eat their food quietly. While Yata is eating, he fails to notice that the other boy's attention isn't on his food, but on him instead. The blue eyes continue to watch the skateboarder's every move, scrutinizing everything he does and memorizing it, capturing it to its fullest extent. Yata suddenly has a strange feeling going down his spine, and it irks him.

Glaring at the other boy, he spits out. "Saruhiko, you looking at me like that is giving me one hell of a serious chill going down my spine. If you don't stop, I might not finish my food and let you sleep on the couch tonight for the whole week, and I don't care about your injury,"

Fushimi only clicks his tongue at that and finishes the rest of his dinner quietly, earning a quirked brow from Yata. Once they're done, Yata washes the dishes and Fushimi slowly make his way back to the bedroom, his injury throbbing painfully in his chest. Hobbling and grasping the wall for support and panting slightly, he finally reaches the bedroom and was about to fall to his knees when he felt a pair of small arms supporting him.

"You've always have a weak side, even in the past, didn't I tell you that? Stop trying to act so tough all the time especially after being shot near the heart and falling into coma for two weeks. You're not fooling anybody," the skateboarder said gently, but his eyes shine sternly as he admonishes the blue clansman. He circles his arms around Fushimi's shoulder and chest and helps him to the bed before lowering him gently.

Once his body touches the mattress, Fushimi relaxes himself and eyes Yata as he changes to his nightwear. "I heard that Cancers are more caring than usual, but I didn't think you'd have that instinct too. Well, that saved me a lot of trouble," Fushimi says in his usual bored manner, but Yata managed to pick up the slight teasing tone in them causing him to blush somewhat.

"I just don't want to find a corpse in the house, that's all!" he shouts back vehemently, but with the blush dusting his cheeks, it's rather hard for Fushimi to take him seriously so he simply smirks at the boy slyly. It's fun seeing the vanguard so flustered around him, makes him wonder what he's been thinking the past couple of weeks while he was out cold.

As Yata climbs into bed, Fushimi seizes this chance and pulls the other boy close to him in an embrace. With the cuffs gone, they won't have any problems getting tangled together, though Fushimi would actually prefer that. Yata tries to struggle free but seeing that contented look on Fushimi's face again, he gave in and relaxes himself. If Fushimi is happy, then so will he. After all, it's been a while since they've done this.

The vanguard actually wanted to call Izumo and tells him that Fushimi is fine and that they've been rid of the spell the girls cast on them, but that would also mean that they can now no longer live together, since neither have any obligations to each other. But their friendship has become stronger, and they both somehow felt happier with each other and Yata actually doesn't want to leave Fushimi's side. Ever since his King's death and Homra disbanded, the only one he has left is Fushimi.

"You know," Yata starts slowly, not wanting to scare Fushimi off. "The cuffs are no longer tying us, so we don't actually have to stay together anymore,"

He could feel Fushimi tensing and is surprised to hear a soft growl coming from the other boy. "But I want Misaki to stay here, Homra doesn't exist anymore and you can hardly pay your rent. Why waste your money? Just stay and don't leave," he could hear the possessiveness in that voice, but then again that's how Fushimi really is.

They fell in silence; with Yata not even sure on what to say and only letting Fushimi hold him tight before they both fall asleep.

The next day, Fushimi is relaxing on the couch and watching TV while Yata is preparing some toast. The blue clansman believes that it's best if Yata simply stayed with him, that would cause less trouble and the money that the crow make won't have to be spent on some measly rent payment, Fushimi could take care of all. Yata however, believes that it's not right for him to just freeload off of Fushimi and not having to do anything.

_It's fine, because all I need is Misaki, and you can cook and clean while I'm off at work. We'd be a happy, married couple_, Fushimi had said, earning himself some light but still painful punches to the arm and a stuttering, blushing Yata. The skateboarder personally thought that it was a somewhat good idea, until the idiot had to bring up the 'married couple' comment.

The crow had called Izumo and told, or stutter his wish to actually stay with Fushimi and keep him in place. The bartender was more than happy when he got the news, even supporting Yata and told him that 'someone would at least keep him out of trouble'. Truthfully, Izumo hoped that the two would remain together as they were the only ones who can handle each other's personality.

"Oi, monkey, your toast is ready," Yata calls out from the kitchen. Fushimi only grunts in response and doesn't even look away from whatever show he's watching prompting Yata to bring the toast to him instead. The quiet and serene atmosphere is somewhat odd to them, Yata's normally associated with the loudness of the bar and Fushimi's always by himself and doesn't talk to the other agents.

They ate their breads in silence, with the noise only being from the show they're watching. Not wanting to waste his time, Fushimi quickly finishes his food and pins a surprised Yata on the couch. The vanguard nearly choked on his food but manages to swallow it safely and pushing the blue clansman's face away from his.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, jumping on me like that? Do you want me to punch you or something?" the skateboarder shouts vehemently as he continues to push Fushimi's face away from his, but Fushimi doesn't seem to budge and his eyes clearly shows he wanted to say something.

"Misaki..." Fushimi calls out softly. Yata stops struggling and turns to look at Fushimi with a bewildered expression. That's the same voice Fushimi had called him when they did that stupid interview, only that it's gentler and more...loving to Yata's ears, and he could slowly feel his cheeks burning up because of that alone.

"Misaki, don't go anywhere, just stay with me and don't look at anyone else besides me," Fushimi says as he embraces the shorter male. _Now that I got your attention, I don't want you to look anywhere else. Just me, only me,_ he thought fiercely and slowly releasing the vanguard into a loose hug. Yata can only blink in confusion at the sudden exclamation, but he nods his head nevertheless.

Smiling and finally happy that the only person who owns his attention now belong to him, kisses the crow lovingly on his cheek causing said crow to sputter in embarrassment. Yata knows that Fushimi only has eyes for him, hence why he didn't regret getting that kiss. And from that moment on, their bond that was strengthened by a pair of Strain girls grew stronger with the presence of love in their lives.

* * *

And that is the end of our story.. Truth be told, I want to do alternate endings but I've been very busy nowadays, so I hardly have any time at the computer anymore. I'm afraid that idea will have to be cancelled, forgive me for that... *bows* But I hope this ending makes you happy nonetheless. And don't worry, the kiss on the cheek is just the beginning. *winks*

I'm planning to do a sequel for this actually, remember in the first chapter I said I wanted to do an m-preg but got no idea? Well, problem solved! *grins* I just got bitten by a plot bunny a couple of nights ago and putting it on papers first, once I got the whole thing lined up, I'll start writing it down. *smiles* It might take a while, but it'll be up soon hopefully.

Thank you, all of you who have been supporting me *bows* You have no idea how much it means to me that you guys read this story from beginning to end. Now that this story is completed, I shall be seeing you guys again in the upcoming sequel so please wait a bit *smiles* We'll see each other again soon!

**_-LiYaNa1995-_**


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